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Barracks improvements, installation safety top priorities for military construction budget
The $21.5 billion budget request for military barracks would address a backlog of construction and repairs, logistics leaders said.
US special operations leaders frustrated by inability to modify their own equipment
The military must wait for manufacturers to fix or upgrade equipment, leaving them with outdated capabilities as technology evolves quickly, they said.
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Learn how your military benefits — including health care, retirement pay and more — have changed in 2025.
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Pentagon & Congress
China fires verbal warning shot at US over Taiwan
Any misstep over Taiwan could push the U.S. and China toward direct confrontation, Chinese leader Xi Jinping told President Donald Trump.
‘West-side Skid Row’: Pests, crime, litigation plague plans for VA’s Los Angeles campus
Pests and crime threaten VA's efforts to expand housing for homeless veterans at its sprawling west Los Angeles campus.
Iran military threat is diminished but not eliminated, CENTCOM chief says
Adm. Brad Cooper said the U.S. had severely degraded Iran’s warfighting capacity, including the elimination of roughly 90% of its inventory of naval mines.
Energy secretary: Iran ‘frighteningly close’ to nuclear weapon despite Operation Epic Fury
“They are weeks — a small number of weeks — away to enrich that to weapons-grade uranium," Energy Secretary Chris Wright told a Senate committee.
In other news
Trump’s Golden Dome missile shield estimated to cost $1.2 trillion
A national missile defense system would cost $1.2 trillion to build and maintain over the next 20 years, a nonpartisan federal agency estimated.
Sailor reportedly finds dead rat in finished energy drink
The sailor said medical personnel informed him, “with the chemicals that are in Monster, that it should be OK.”
That time the Air Force proposed making a ‘gay bomb’
The Air Force once explored the idea of a chemical weapon that would make enemy soldiers sexually irresistible to one another — striking a blow to morale.
Master Chief actor condemns use of character in White House’s Iran war hype video
“I demand that the producers of this disgusting and juvenile war porn remove my voice immediately,” Steve Downes wrote in a post on X.
‘War Machine’ review: Finally, a training scenario with aliens
The sci-fi flick raises the premise: What if the final phase of U.S. Army Ranger selection suddenly involved fighting a giant alien robot?
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The Pentagon looks to shake up the contracts and acquisition process and a rocket company soars on this week’s edition of Defense Dollars.
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MORE STORIES
After delay, Senate confirms Sam Brown to lead VA memorial affairs
The combat-wounded veteran and former Senate hopeful will oversee operations at hundreds of VA cemeteries and memorial sites.
Longer assignments coming soon for troops heading to South Korea
Longer tours will bring more stability for military forces and improve readiness and service members' quality of life, officials said.
By Karen Jowers
Nonprofit helps expand child care for military families in five states
Summer camps and more care for school-aged children will help ease shortages in five locations.
By Karen Jowers
Advocates worry new White House order on homelessness could hurt vets
A White House plan would make it easier for local officials to force homeless veterans off the streets and into medical or criminal institutions.
Work on annual defense authorization bill will wait until September
Defense and veterans hearings on Capitol Hill for the week of July 28, 2025.
CENTCOM strike kills ISIS leader in Syria amid US troop drawdown
American officials said that Dhiya’ Zawba Muslih al-Hardani posed a threat to U.S. and allied forces.
DOD trying to head off problems with troops’ household goods moves
PCS task force working to solve troops' real-time household goods moving problems.
By Karen Jowers
Trump pick to lead VA health care reopens fight over ‘choice’ for vets
John Bartrum, nominee to be VA Under Secretary for Health, said he wants more freedom for veterans to use medical care options outside the department.
Republican lawmakers take aim at VA bonuses amid staffing cuts
GOP lawmakers are pushing reforms for a host of department employee financial incentives, but Democrats worry the moves will hurt recruiting efforts.
Over 20 million DOD users to get new online login verification process
The new myAuth system replaces the legacy DS Logon system, which authenticates users onto more than 200 Defense Department and Veterans Affairs websites.
By Karen Jowers