Pentagon and Congress

VA rushes fix for payment problem before the rent is due

Roughly 280,000 student veterans and dependents could have faced a delay in benefits.

7 hours ago

A woman looks at a UFO display outside of the Little A'Le'Inn, in Rachel, Nev., the closest town to Area 51, July 22, 2019.

Congress calls for more funding of Pentagon UFO office

Austin pledged to fully fund the office in the future.

10 hours ago

Veterans

Transgender vets call for more protections from Congress, VA

Advocates want VA to move ahead with plans to provide gender-affirming surgery to transgender veterans, a policy change first promised in summer 2021.

Vet agency chief calls onboarding times for new hires ‘indefensible’

Physicians can wait as long as a year to start working even after they've been hired, department officials acknowledged.

3 days ago

Senate votes to repeal Iraq war authorizations

Some Iraq war veterans have rallied around the bipartisan vote to repeal the 2002 authorization as Congress seeks to reassert its war powers authorities.

3 days ago

This week in Congress: Top military leaders head to Capitol Hill

Defense and veterans hearings on Capitol Hill for the week of March 27, 2023.

5 days ago

Abortion fight in Senate snarls hundreds of military promotions

GOP Sen. Tommy Tuberville has vowed to hold up all military nominations over his objections to the military's abortion policies.

8 days ago

First look — White House says GOP budget plan would harm defense

Administration officials are accusing far-right Republicans of undermining national security with their fiscal goals.

8 days ago

VA leaders aren’t worried about looming budget fights ... yet

Lawmakers are skeptical of the White House's plan for $325 billion in department funding next year.

8 days ago

Boosting enlisted pay to boost recruiting? Nope.

Defense officials say they will look into the idea of targeted pay raises in future department studies.

10 days ago

VA change will lower home loan rates for some Native American vets

Changes to the VA Native American Direct Loan program would drop interest rates from 6% to 2.5% for some home purchases.

10 days ago

Transgender troops warn GOP bill could upend lives, weaken military

Senior military leaders to face questioning on transgender, diversity issues.

10 days ago

Dept. of Veterans Affairs, union spar over staffing

VA officials said hiring and retention levels are at record highs, but workers groups say even more staff is needed to keep up.

10 days ago

US to fast-track Abrams tanks for Ukraine by choosing older version

The Pentagon is speeding up its delivery of M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine, opting to send a refurbished older model.

11 days ago

Republican budget plan will ‘undermine’ US security, warns Biden admin

The Biden administration is portraying plans from Republicans to gut the federal budget as jeopardizing national security.

12 days ago

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses a joint meeting of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022.

US sending ammunition, tanker trucks, boats to Ukraine

Latest package includes large amounts of ammunition, such as rockets for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, fuel tanker trucks and riverine boats.

12 days ago

This week in Congress: SecDef defends the White House budget

Defense and veterans hearings on Capitol Hill for the week of March 20, 2023.

2 weeks ago

An assault amphibious vehicle assigned to the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit enters the well deck of the amphibious assault ship Wasp on Jan. 14, 2019.

Greece buying vehicles US Marine Corps beached after fatal sinking

The U.S. government has approved the sale of dozens of Assault Amphibious Vehicles to Greece.

2 weeks ago

Marines refuel an MV-22B Osprey at Peterson Air Force Base, Colorado, after completing an exercise flight, Jan. 28, 2021.

Pentagon to phase out firefighting foam with ‘forever chemicals’

The EPA on March 14 proposed new standards for six types of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as “forever chemicals,” in drinking water.

2 weeks ago

Demand exploding for Tomahawk missiles as US backs latest foreign sale

Australia plans to buy the latest version of America’s long-range Tomahawk land attack missile.

2 weeks ago

Pentagon & Congress

The latest military news from the Pentagon and Congress.

Roughly 280,000 student veterans and dependents could have faced a delay in benefits.

Austin pledged to fully fund the office in the future.

Advocates want VA to move ahead with plans to provide gender-affirming surgery to transgender veterans, a policy change first promised in summer 2021.

Physicians can wait as long as a year to start working even after they've been hired, department officials acknowledged.

Some Iraq war veterans have rallied around the bipartisan vote to repeal the 2002 authorization as Congress seeks to reassert its war powers authorities.

Defense and veterans hearings on Capitol Hill for the week of March 27, 2023.

GOP Sen. Tommy Tuberville has vowed to hold up all military nominations over his objections to the military's abortion policies.

Administration officials are accusing far-right Republicans of undermining national security with their fiscal goals.

Lawmakers are skeptical of the White House's plan for $325 billion in department funding next year.

Defense officials say they will look into the idea of targeted pay raises in future department studies.

Changes to the VA Native American Direct Loan program would drop interest rates from 6% to 2.5% for some home purchases.

Senior military leaders to face questioning on transgender, diversity issues.

VA officials said hiring and retention levels are at record highs, but workers groups say even more staff is needed to keep up.

The Pentagon is speeding up its delivery of M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine, opting to send a refurbished older model.

The Biden administration is portraying plans from Republicans to gut the federal budget as jeopardizing national security.

Latest package includes large amounts of ammunition, such as rockets for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, fuel tanker trucks and riverine boats.

Defense and veterans hearings on Capitol Hill for the week of March 20, 2023.

The U.S. government has approved the sale of dozens of Assault Amphibious Vehicles to Greece.

The EPA on March 14 proposed new standards for six types of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, known as “forever chemicals,” in drinking water.

Australia plans to buy the latest version of America’s long-range Tomahawk land attack missile.