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Romo Nominated to Head Selective Service
from San Antonio Express-News
President Barack Obama nominated Larry Romo of San Antonio to serve as the director of the Selective Service System. The president notified the Senate of his intent to nominate Romo and Philip E. Coyle III to serve as the associate director for National Security and International Affairs, calling them "talented public servants" in a statement released by the White House.
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Senator Urges Against U.S. Troop Expansion
from The San Francisco Chronicle
As President Obama considers whether to deploy more U.S. troops to Afghanistan, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee said that such a buildup could backfire and end up helping the Taliban cause. "Expansion of our combat presence could feed a Taliban propaganda machine that seeks to portray the forces arrayed against them not as a home-grown domestic effort to prevent the return of a detested extremist regime, which is what it is, but as the effort of a foreign occupier," Michigan Sen. Carl Levin said at a conference.
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Seven on Defense Panel Scrutinized
from The Washington Post
Nearly half the members of a powerful House subcommittee in control of Pentagon spending are under scrutiny by ethics investigators in Congress, who have trained their lens on the relationships between seven panel members and an influential lobbying firm founded by a former Capitol Hill aide.
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It's a Bird. It's a Plane. It's Pork
from Business Week
President Barack Obama and Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates want to leave the Cold War in the past—finally—and reshape the U.S. military into more of a counterinsurgency force. They have made reforming weapons acquisition a major priority, saying that some hardware designed for battling Soviet armies or other massive foes in vast open-field clashes ought to be replaced by lighter, less expensive gear.
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Senate Approves Stopgap Spending
from The Associated Press via Philadelphia Enquirer
The Senate cleared a stopgap spending measure to avoid shutting down most federal agencies. The measure - now ready for President Obama's signature - would give Congress until Dec. 18, to finish seven incomplete spending measures that were supposed to be wrapped up by Sept. 30.
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Pentagon: Lockheed F-35 Still Raises 'Concerns'
from Bloomberg
Lockheed Martin Corp.'s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter still poses a risk of cost increases, according to an independent study of the Pentagon's most expensive weapons program, the Defense Department spokesman said. The new cost estimate is "pessimistic and continues to raise concerns about the course the program is on," Geoff Morrell, the department's spokesman, said at a news conference. Ash Carter, the Pentagon's top weapons buyer, has been briefed on the analysis by the Joint Estimate Team, Morrell said.
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Boeing Backers Press Obama on $35Billion Tanker Contract
from The Associated Press
A bipartisan group of lawmakers who support Boeing in its bid for a $35 billion tanker contract want President Barack Obama to force the Air Force to include a recent World Trade Organization ruling against Airbus in its decision. The WTO in September issued an interim ruling that found Airbus received illegal launch aid from European governments to build its aircraft.
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C-17 Arrives at South Carolina Air Base
from The Post and Courier
Air Force and Boeing aviation officials said it was just a coincidence the Charleston Air Force Base's 58th C-17 Globemaster III cargo plane arrived in South Carolina, the very same day Boeing picked North Charleston as its new commercial jet expansion site.
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Army to field upgraded Raven UAV in December
from Army Times
When a commander in the war zone needs a bird's eye view, it often means grabbing a nearby rucksack and releasing a small unmanned aerial vehicle dubbed the Raven. Tossed to the skies and controlled from the ground, soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan are using the UAV for overhead observation.
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| RESERVE & GUARD MOBILIZED |
National Guard (In Federal Status) and Reserve Activated as of Oct. 27, 2009
from DefenseLink
This week the Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard announced an increase in activated reservists, while the Army and Marine Corps announced a decrease. The net collective result is 1,134 fewer reservists activated than last week. At any given time, services may activate some units and individuals, while deactivating others, making it possible for these figures to either increase or decrease.
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