Policy
Lawmakers rip into defense secretary over flat Pentagon budget
The Pentagon is counting on one-time funds from a reconciliation bill to fund investments in shipbuilding and missile defense.
USAF slashes F-35 buy, boosts next-gen fighter in unconventional 2026 budget proposal
The Pentagon’s spending request includes not just the usual appropriations, but also the still-under-debate reconciliation bill.
Meet DOGE's team inside the Defense Department
ProPublica has identified four men installed by defense contractor Elon Musk at the Pentagon—and 100 more across the federal government.
US spy chief wants intel community to move away from building its own tech
Gabbard says industry can provide more tools, citing AI systems that are already helping analysts with major tasks.
US Air Force’s nascent radar plane faces the axe
Hegseth says the E-7 Wedgetail may be discarded to fund Pentagon shift toward space-based ISR.
Trump limits use of cyber rules to punish US hackers, election meddlers
A Friday executive order echoes unproven claims that cyber and surveillance authorities were politicized to target Trump and his allies.
How budget talks will shape Marines’ amphibious fleet plans
Slow builds and yearslong maintenance struggles are hampering plans to put three amphibious ready groups at sea.
Congress would like the Army to show its work on ‘transformation’
The service hasn’t briefed lawmakers on its plans to cut programs.
'The intern in charge': Meet the 22-year-old picked to lead terrorism prevention
One year out of college and with no apparent national security expertise, Thomas Fugate is a DHS official running the U.S. government's main hub for countering violent extremism.
Ready, slash, aim: USAID-State merger proceeding without key plans, IG finds
State set hiring goals without a strategy, began the merger without finishing the plan, and is slated to dismiss an oversight board before the effort is complete, the inspector general found.
What will DOD civilians do at the border? The Pentagon won’t say.
The Defense Department declined to provide any details on Monday’s order to provide support to DHS.
Despite Golden Dome, Space Force budget would shrink again under 2026 spending plan
The White House appears to be pinning its hopes on the one-time reconciliation bill.
Pentagon won’t say how many civilians have left since February
The department has used a mix of layoffs and voluntary resignations to cut workforce.
2026 budget proposal would axe one-third of CISA workforce
The White House spending proposal would cut nearly 1,000 jobs at the nation’s lead civilian cyber agency, and reduce funding for related cyber and intel programs.
New plans detail State Department layoffs and changes
National-security offices and units that cover Asia and the Middle East will be consolidated or slashed as thousands of employees are laid off.
Pentagon aims to save money by reducing consulting contracts
SecDef Hegseth says DOD personnel should take over “system IT integration, implementation, or advisory services"—but the military's own IT agency is also bracing for cuts.
Hegseth halves staff of Pentagon’s testing-oversight office
The move may reduce the quality of DOT&E’s second opinions, but may not affect safety, former officials said.
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Pentagon orders civilian employees to submit money-saving ideas
It’s the last step in the "5 bullet points" weekly email exercise.
An 18th-century war power resurfaces in cyber policy talks
An old-world legal concept has drawn interest as a way to give private firms more leeway to fight state-backed hackers.
The DOD’s tech agency braces for 10% workforce cut
The agency hopes to bring some staff back in a “surgical rehiring,” said Lt. Gen. Paul Stanton, head of the Defense Information Systems Agency.
