Twitter Does It Again: Behold @cromnibus

(Photo from Twitter) Legislative crises have becoming a Holiday Season tradition in Washington right up there with powerful officials mingling with other powerful officials at invitation-only parties. But, thankfully, a snarky soul has created a Twitter account to help us all cope. On Tuesday evening, senior lawmakers rolled out what’s called a “cromnibus.” You may…

Introducing ‘CongressWatch Minute’

In our first CongressWatch Minute, Senior Congressional Reporter John T. Bennett discusses why Congress may stumble and bicker into failing to grant the Pentagon’s request for extra funding for Israel’s Iron Dome before leaving for a five-week summer break — even though the proposal has broad support among members of both parties in the House and…

DoD OCO Requests $700M for Bombs and Ammo

As the congressional oversight panels continue their review of the Pentagon’s $58.6 billion 2015 Overseas Contingency Operations budget request, much of the focus has been on the high-profile items, such as a $4 billion request for a new counterterrorism fund and $1 billion to boost US military presence in Europe. But the request includes $53 billion…

Army’s Aerostat Ready for Overseas Deployment

If a US combatant commander stationed somewhere around the globe feels that the one thing the command is missing is the ability to detect missiles, airplanes and drones hundreds of miles away, the US Army has just what they’re looking for. Almost a decade after it first began development—and just two years after a 2012…

ESSAY: Obama’s Bergdahl-Taliban Gamble Is All About Timing

Buried beneath the nasty political brawl over the Obama administration’s swap of five senior Taliban prisoners for Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl is Obama’s cold-blooded strategic thinking. And President Barack Obama’s big gamble already has deepened Republicans’ frustrations with him, which could make easing sequestration a political impossibility.

NSA Doesn’t Scoop Up Facial Recognition info on US Citizens – On Purpose

The head of the National Security Agency insisted today that contrary to recent reports, his organization does not collect facial recognition data on US citizens – on purpose. “We do not do this in some unilateral basis against US citizens,” insisted Adm. Michael Rogers. “We have very specific restrictions when it comes to US persons.”…

Celeb Chef Robert Irvine to Open Restaurant at the Pentagon?

Rumors are swirling that celebrity chef Robert Irvine — host of Food Network’s Restaurant: Impossible — is opening a new eatery in the Pentagon. The former Royal Navy chef tweeted on Monday that he was traveling to DC for meeting about opening a restaurant in the Pentagon (see below).   It’s not yet clear if Irvine will soon be feeding the the…

Dempsey to Retired Generals: Shut Up When it Comes to Politics

Like former Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, does not like it when he sees retired generals making political statements. Dempsey’s view: If you are a retired officer and want to run for political office, go for it. If not, keep your mouth closed. “If you want to get out…