The Insider

The House Armed Services Committee begins crafting its fiscal year 2024 defense authorization bill this week at the subcommittee level. Meanwhile, senior Pentagon officials are scheduled to speak on Capitol Hill.

Tuesday

The Senate Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee holds a hearing on the missile defense budget.

The Special Competitive Studies Project hosts the Ash Carter Exchange on Innovation and National Security featuring several senior Pentagon officials.

Wednesday

The House Foreign Affairs Committee holds a hearing on "Modernizing U.S. Arms Exports and a Stronger AUKUS."

The Mitchell Institute holds an event with Space Training and Readiness Command chief Maj. Gen. Shawn Bratton.

The Center for Strategic and International Studies hosts a discussion on the contested space domain.

Thursday

The Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee holds a hearing on the defense budget with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley.

Senior Defense Department chief information officers speak at a DefenseScoop DefenseTalks event.

The House Oversight national security, the border and foreign affairs subcommittee holds a hearing on "Challenges and Solutions in Naval Surface Ship Construction."

The House Armed Services cyber, information technology and innovation subcommittee marks up its version of the defense authorization bill.

The House Armed Services strategic forces subcommittee marks up its version of the defense authorization bill.

The House Armed Services seapower and projection forces subcommittee marks up its version of the defense authorization bill.

The House Armed Services personnel subcommittee marks up its version of the defense authorization bill.

The House Armed Services tactical air and land forces subcommittee marks up its version of the defense authorization bill.

The House Armed Services intelligence and special operations subcommittee marks up its version of the defense authorization bill.

Friday

The House Armed Services readiness subcommittee marks up its version of the defense authorization bill.

Seven former defense secretaries have sent a letter to Senate leaders urging them to “act expeditiously” to confirm nearly 200 military nominees that have been blocked from confirmation by Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), who is holding up the process over his opposition to Pentagon travel policies for servicemembers seeking abortion services.

Signatories of the letter sent to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) include former defense secretaries Mark Esper, Jim Mattis, Leon Panetta, Chuck Hagel, William Cohen and William Perry.

“The blanket hold on the promotion or reassignment of these senior uniformed leaders is harming military readiness and risks damaging U.S. national security,” the former defense chiefs wrote.

“Because the Senate is required to confirm every general and flag officer for promotion or for reassignment,” they said, “this practice has traditionally been a pro-forma exercise, except where there have been specific concerns about individual nominees, which were then handled separately.”

Tuberville, however, has issued a blanket hold on military nominations and promotions that has been in place for several weeks, citing his opposition to a Pentagon policy that gives military servicemembers paid leave and travel expenses to obtain abortion services in states where they remain legal. He has likened the Pentagon to an “abortion travel agency.”

The former defense secretaries, without mentioning Tuberville’s name, say the “current hold” is “preventing key leaders from assuming important, senior command and staff positions around the world.”

They note the hold is impacting “important command positions” like leading the 5th Fleet in Bahrain and the 7th Fleet in the Pacific, “which are critical to checking Iranian and Chinese aggression, respectively.”

The former defense chiefs also highlight other expected vacancies that will need to be filled, including the next military representative to NATO and the director of intelligence at U.S. Cyber Command.

“Leaving these and many other senior positions in doubt at a time of enormous geopolitical uncertainty sends the wrong message to our adversaries and could weaken our deterrence,” they wrote.

Additionally, they wrote, the blanket hold will impact nearly 80 three- and four-star commanders ending their terms in the coming months who will not be able to be replaced, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

“There are also real-world impacts on the families of these senior officers,” they wrote. “Most cannot move and resettle their families; their children cannot enroll at their next schools on time; and spouses cannot start new jobs at the next duty station. We can think of few things as irresponsible and uncaring as harming the families of those who serve our nation in uniform.”

Senators seeking policy changes, they said, should do so through legislation, not the holding of military nominations and promotions.

“We, therefore, strongly urge the Senate to ensure the continued readiness of the U.S. armed forces by lifting the blanket hold and promptly voting to confirm these uniformed nominees,” they wrote.

Tuberville, meanwhile, has shown no sign of backing off his hold, last month blocking an attempt to begin advancing nominees through unanimous consent.

This Thursday INSIDER Daily Digest has news on the Pentagon's Defense Industrial Base Cybersecurity program, the Government Accountability Office's latest congressional testimony on military readiness and more.

The Defense Department issued a proposed rule Wednesday that would allow more defense contractors who hold sensitive DOD information to become part of the Pentagon's Defense Industrial Base Cybersecurity program:

Defense ISAC leader identifies link between Pentagon proposed rule for DIB program and CISA incident reporting regime

Steve Shirley, executive director of the National Defense Information Sharing and Analysis Center, sees an opportunity for the Defense Department and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to work together on incident reporting as the Pentagon starts to expand its voluntary information sharing program and CISA implements a regime for critical infrastructure.

Pentagon acquisition chief Bill LaPlante spoke this week on a panel hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations:

LaPlante wants to see 'production, production, production'

Pentagon acquisition chief Bill LaPlante said this week that defense industrial base policy is in the middle of a "pivot" driven by the need to fill capacity gaps highlighted by the ongoing war in Ukraine and the need to prepare to possibly aid Taiwan in the event of a conflict with China.

The Office of the Secretary of Defense plans to assess the Glide Phase Intercept program by looking for evidence that Raytheon Technologies and Northrop Grumman can design a new hypersonic defense system faster than previously estimated:

DOD open to accelerating GPI fielding goal, industry must prove technology can mature faster

The Defense Department will explore the possibility of accelerating the Glide Phase Interceptor program schedule -- currently slated for fielding in 2034 -- if contractors developing competing designs for a hypersonic-killing guided missile provide compelling evidence that yet-to-be-developed technology is sufficiently mature to achieve earlier deployment.

The Government Accountability Office this week submitted testimony to the Senate Armed Services readiness and management support subcommittee stating that the Defense Department "faces several challenges as it works to rebuild and restore readiness across the military while also modernizing its forces":

GAO report offers mixed review of force readiness

The military's resource readiness ratings increased for five years through fiscal year 2021 in the air, ground and space forces but decreased across the sea forces, according to a Government Accountability Office report.

Document: GAO testimony on military readiness

More coverage from that subcommittee hearing:

Space Force lacks ability to provide realistic mission training

The Space Force does not yet have the ability to present realistic threats for trainers or to carry out integrated training for intra and joint services, Vice Chief of Space Operations Gen. David Thompson told lawmakers on Tuesday.

GAO: Army still must address challenges for rail transport of equipment

The Army has yet to address a number of issues related to the maintenance of rail transportation it uses for ammunition, vehicles and other equipment, according to the Government Accountability Office.

A new Army counter-UAS academy is expected to reach initial operational capability in the first quarter of FY-24, and full operational capability in the first quarter of FY-25:

Joint counter-UAS training academy at Ft. Sill on track to begin in first quarter of FY-24

The Army is set to transition its joint counter-UAS training from Yuma Proving Ground, AZ to Ft. Sill, OK starting in the first quarter of fiscal year 2024, according to a service spokesman.

The head of the National Nuclear Security Administration testified on Capitol Hill this week on her organization's fiscal year 2024 budget request:

Workforce still a roadblock to NNSA's 2030 goal of 80 pits per year, administrator says

Skilled and craft worker hiring and retention remain the biggest hurdle to reaching the National Nuclear Security Administration's nuclear pit production goals, Administrator Jill Hruby told Congress Wednesday.

The Defense Department today announced a $300 million security assistance package for Ukraine, including additional ammunition for long-range artillery systems.

The package, funded via presidential “drawdown” authority, will transfer weapons directly from U.S. stocks and is the 37th such action since August 2021.

The package includes:

• Additional ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS);

• 155mm Howitzers;

• 155mm artillery rounds;

• 120mm, 81mm, and 60mm mortar rounds;

• Tube-Launched, Optically Tracked, Wire-Guided (TOW) missiles;

• AT-4 and Carl Gustaf anti-armor weapon systems;

• Hydra-70 aircraft rockets;

• Small arms and small arms ammunition;

• Demolition munitions for obstacle clearing;

• Trucks and trailers to transport heavy equipment;

• Testing and diagnostic equipment to support vehicle maintenance and repair;

• Spare parts and other field equipment.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces are preparing to mount a spring counteroffensive against invading Russian troops that have fortified their positions in the eastern region of the country.

Gen. Christopher Cavoli, chief of U.S. European Command and NATO, said April 26 that Ukraine has nearly all the weapons it requires to commence the operation.

“According to the modeling that we’ve very carefully done with them, the Ukrainians are in a good position,” he said. “I am very confident that we have delivered the materiel that they need and we’ll continue a pipeline to sustain their operations as well.”

(Editor's note: This story has been updated with detailed schedule information.)

The House Armed Services Committee will convene to mark up its annual defense authorization bill May 23, with subcommittees meeting May 11 and 12.

During the marathon mark-up session, lawmakers are expected to debate, among many other things, a topline budget increase to President Biden’s fiscal year 2024 request for national defense that currently stands at $886.4 billion, with $842 billion specifically for the Defense Department.

Committee Chairman Mike Rogers (R-AL) has said the request, which would be a .08% increase above what Congress enacted for FY-23, is too small to keep pace with China’s ongoing military modernization and deter Russia.

Meanwhile, the defense topline debate will play out amid broader partisan disagreements over spending and raising the federal debt limit to avoid default.

The committee has released a detailed schedule:

Thursday, May 11, 2023

Subcommittee on Cyber, Information Technologies, and Innovation

at 9:00am ET

(Rayburn – 2118 – Open)

Subcommittee on Strategic Forces

10:00am ET

(Rayburn – 2212 – Open)

Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces

at 11:00am ET

(Rayburn – 2118 – Open)

Subcommittee on Military Personnel

at 12:00pm ET

(Rayburn – 2212 – Open)

Subcommittee on Tactical Air and Land Forces

at 1:00pm ET

(Rayburn – 2118 – Open)

Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations

at 3:00pm ET

(Rayburn – 2212 – Open)

Friday, May 12

Subcommittee on Readiness

at 8:30am ET

(Rayburn – 2118 – Open)

Tuesday, May 23

Full Committee Markup

at 10:00am ET

(Rayburn – 2118 – Open)

Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall said the Defense Department would face severe consequences if Congress and the White House remain stalemated and allow the federal government to default on the nation's debt.

“The short answer to your question is it would be devastating,” Kendall told Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing today.

“I think most people would predict a severe recession at least,” he said. “Going forward, one of the biggest parts of the federal budget is the interest on the debt. If those interest rates go up -- which is what happens to you when you default, if you can borrow money at all -- then that expense becomes much greater. The interest on the debt is already roughly at the level of the defense budget.”

Kendall also said news of U.S. default would likely be welcome news among military planners in Beijing.

“Obviously, anything that damages us would be a benefit to China,” he said. “For any creditor to default on their debt causes a number of reactions. It's more expensive for you to get money. Your creditors aren't as willing to lend money. All the economists I've seen suggest it will be an absolutely devastating impact.”

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has sent a letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) warning that the United States could be unable to pay its debts “as early as June 1” if Congress does not agree to increase the federal government’s borrowing limit, urging lawmakers to “act as soon as possible.”

But the clock is ticking, especially in the House, which has 12 legislative days left in May and is in recess this week.

McCarthy said last month at the New York Stock Exchange that defaulting on the debt is “not an option” but will not support any effort to increase the debt limit until congressional Democrats and the White House agree to significant spending cuts.

President Biden and senior Democrats in Congress, however, have rejected the spending cuts, which would lock discretionary spending at levels not seen since fiscal year 2022. Biden has invited McCarthy and other congressional leaders to the White House for a May 9 meeting on the debt limit.