COUNTDOWN TO CR: This is the time of year when the Pentagon typically begins sounding the alarm about the devastating impact of Congress’s failure to pass the defense budget on time, but despite the fact that none of 12 funding bills has made it out of the Senate Appropriations Committee, Pentagon and congressional leaders seem resigned to the likely prospect of another continuing resolution to keep the government open past the election.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said last week that Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had agreed to support a “clean CR” hopefully through the beginning of December, which would freeze government spending at this year’s level when the 2021 fiscal year begins Oct. 1. Depending on the results of the election, another CR might be needed to extend funding until January.
The Pentagon hates CRs because it means a halt to all manner of new programs and initiatives. “Every day that we have a continuing resolution means it’s a day in which our training, our maintenance, our modernization, and everything is impaired because there are a number of things that you cannot do under the CR, such as new starts of programs,” Defense Secretary Mark Esper said a year ago at this time. If the budget impasse drags on months, it would be “devastating to our military readiness.”
THAT WAS THEN: This time around, Esper has little to say about the ills of stopgap funding, aware that another admonition from him is unlikely to move a Congress mired in partisan bickering.
Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner expressed his “grave concern” that as of Monday, the federal government is just 16 days away from a repeat of the disastrous shutdown of 2018 and 2019.
“It is encouraging that Secretary Mnuchin and Speaker Pelosi seemed to have reached at least an agreement in principle on this must-pass stopgap funding,” Warner said. “But I’ve now been around here long enough to know that when negotiation within and between two chambers on supposedly must-pass coronavirus legislation broke down and stalled, that breakdown lasted for months.”
NDAA ALSO ON SLOW TRACK: As any high school civics teacher will remind you, in order for the government to spend money, it needs not only an appropriation but an authorization as well. The 2021 National Defense Authorization Act is also mired in partisan debate and even faces a veto threat from President Trump over the issue of renaming Army bases honoring Confederate military leaders.
The House and Senate have passed conflicting versions of the NDAA, and work has begun at the staff level to reconcile the two measures, according to a House congressional aide. But those staff-level discussions are not expected to provide members with options until after the October recess.
“The Speaker’s office appoints conferees,” the aide told the Washington Examiner. “They have not given us a timeline for when that will occur.”
In addition to the high-profile fight with the administration over Confederate-named bases, there are proposed restrictions on future nuclear testing and a withdrawal of U.S. troops from Germany that need to be resolved before a bill can be sent to the president for his signature.
There is also the question of funding for the Stars and Stripes newspaper, which is included in the House NDAA but not the Senate. Trump has vowed to keep the paper in business, overruling Esper’s plan to shut it down.
Good Tuesday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Tyler Van Dyke. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list. And be sure to follow us on Twitter: @dailyondefense.
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HAPPENING TODAY: Trump hosts the Abraham Accords signing ceremony at the White House. The historic agreements normalize relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the foreign ministers from UAE and Bahrain will sign the accords as 700 guests on the South Lawn look on. Trump is expected to sign as a witness.
What’s still unclear is whether the agreement will pave the way for the sale for Lockheed Martin-made F-35 stealth fighter jets to the UAE, something Netanyahu has publicly opposed.
HAPPENING TONIGHT: At Philadelphia’s National Constitution Center, Trump takes part in an ABC News town hall discussion with uncommitted voters, moderated by ABC’s George Stephanopoulos. ABC says the hour-and-a-half-long event, which begins at 9 p.m. EDT, “will provide uncommitted voters a chance to ask the President their important questions before voting.”
TRUMP THREATENS IRAN WITH ATTACK ‘1,000 TIMES GREATER’: In a late-night tweet, Trump has warned Iran not to carry out an alleged plot to kill a U.S. diplomat to avenge the U.S. killing of Iranian Gen. Qassem Soleimani in January.
“According to press reports, Iran may be planning an assassination, or other attack, against the United States in retaliation for the killing of terrorist leader Soleimani, which was carried out for his planning a future attack, murdering U.S. Troops, and the death & suffering caused over so many years,” Trump tweeted at 11 p.m. “Any attack by Iran, in any form, against the United States will be met with an attack on Iran that will be 1,000 times greater in magnitude!”
Asked about the report that Iran was plotting to assassinate the U.S. ambassador to South Africa, Lana Marks, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told Fox, “We make very clear to the Islamic Republic of Iran that this kind of activity, attacking any American any place at any time, whether it’s an American diplomat, an ambassador, or one of our service members, is completely unacceptable.”
“The Islamic Republic of Iran has engaged in assassination efforts all across the world. They have assassinated people in Europe and in other parts of the world. We take these kind of allegations seriously,” Pompeo said. “We’ll do everything that’s within our means to protect any one of our State Department officials the same we do for our soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines.”
McKENZIE: STILL NO SMOKING GUN: The top U.S. commander in charge of the Middle East and Afghanistan says he still can’t confirm intelligence reports suggesting Russian paid the Taliban bounties to kill U.S. and coalition troops in Afghanistan.
Marine Gen. Frank McKenzie, the four-star commander of the U.S. Central Command, told NBC News that a detailed review of all available intelligence has not been able to corroborate the allegations.
“It just has not been proved to a level of certainty that satisfies me,” McKenzie said in an interview with NBC. “We continue to look for that evidence,” he said. “I just haven’t seen it yet. But … it’s not a closed issue.”
“U.S. intelligence agencies have for years documented Russian financial and military support to the Taliban, but a Russian program to incentivize killing American service members would represent a significant escalation,” the report said.
VINDMAN: ‘USEFUL IDIOT, FREE CHICKEN’: Trump should be considered to be “a useful idiot … an unwitting agent” of Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to retired Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, who famously listened in on Trump’s phone call with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and then testified about it at the House impeachment hearings.
In an interview with Atlantic editor in chief Jeffrey Goldberg, Vindman says the Russians “may or may not have dirt on him, but they don’t have to use it.”
“In the Army, we call this ‘free chicken,’ something you don’t have to work for — it just comes to you. This is what the Russians have in Trump: free chicken,” Vindman said. “He has aspirations to be the kind of leader that Putin is, and so he admires him. He likes authoritarian strongmen who act with impunity, without checks and balances. So he’ll try to please Putin,”
Of the phone call, which Trump has described as “perfect,” Vindman said: “I suspected it was criminal, but I knew it was wrong. President Trump knew that Zelensky needed a meeting with him in Washington to strengthen his position vis-à-vis the entrenched opposition at home. So Trump was putting the squeeze on this leader to conduct a corrupt investigation. Trump knew he had them over a barrel. I found it repulsive and un-American for an American president to try to get a leg up by pressuring a foreign leader to get dirt on an American politician.”
BOLTON: ‘A PRETTY GOOD ASSESSMENT, ACTUALLY’: Appearing on CNN on Monday, former national security adviser John Bolton said he found himself in full agreement with Vindman that Trump was “a useful idiot.”
“That’s Vladimir Lenin’s phrase to describe capitalists who don’t understand what the communists were up to,” Bolton told Wolf Blitzer. “And I think in the same article, he used the phrase ‘free chicken.’ That’s just chicken that comes to you, and Trump is Putin’s free chicken. I think that’s a pretty good assessment, actually.”
“As far as him being a useful idiot in the communist sense, really, it is a statement that the person involved doesn’t fully understand the consequences of his actions. And I think that describes Donald Trump in many, many respects,” Bolton said.
RETIRED OFFICERS ALL-IN FOR TRUMP: The Trump campaign has released a list of 235 retired military officers who have endorsed the president for reelection, calling him “a proven leader” who “has been tested as few other presidents have.”
The list includes the former top NATO commander in Bosnia, retired Adm. Leighton Smith; and the former four-star commander of U.S. Joint Forces Command, retired Air Force Gen. Lance Smith.
‘The Democrats’ opposition to border security, their pledge to return to the disastrous Iran nuclear deal, their antagonism towards the police and planned cuts to military spending will leave the United States more vulnerable to foreign enemies,” the generals and admirals write in an open letter. “For these reasons, we support Donald Trump’s re-election. We believe that President Donald Trump is committed to a strong America. As president, he will continue to secure our borders, defeat our adversaries, and restore law and order domestically.”
The release of the letter comes after 75 senior Republican national security officials urged voters to support Joe Biden, calling Trump “unfit to lead during a national crisis.”
In their letter, released last month, they argued that “through his actions and his rhetoric, Trump has demonstrated that he lacks the character and competence to lead this nation and has engaged in corrupt behavior that renders him unfit to serve as President.”
The Rundown
Washington Examiner: China’s nuclear arms buildup ‘inconsistent’ with no-first-use policy, StratCom chief says
Washington Examiner: Treasury Secretary leading “national security review” of TikTok’s proposed sale to Oracle
Washington Examiner: ‘Proven leader’: More than 200 former military leaders endorse Trump in open letter
Washington Examiner: ‘Useful idiot’: Alexander Vindman dubs Trump ‘an unwitting agent of Putin’
Washington Post: Chinese firm harvests social media posts, data of prominent Americans and military
AP: China Warns U.S. Over U.S.-Taiwan Economic Talks
Just the News: China mobilizing ‘whole of society’ in ramped-up intelligence operations, spy expert warns
Wall Street Journal: Putin Vows Support For Belarus President
Washington Post: Putin, Lukashenko discuss ‘integration’ as protests in Belarus continue
Korea Herald: N. Korea Seen Enriching Uranium At Nuclear Facility: IAEA Chief
CNN: Judge rules Chad Wolf likely unlawfully serving as Homeland Security secretary and temporarily blocks some asylum restrictions
McClatchy: ‘They knew people were in danger’: Trump honors Army crews for California wildfire rescues
Air Force Magazine: Air Force Introduces e-Planes for the Digital Era
Defense News: Here’s When The U.S. Navy Thinks The Carrier Ford Will Be Ready To Deploy
Marine Corps Times: How Chimpanzee Research Can Help Decide The Best Size For Your Squad
Calendar
TUESDAY | SEPTEMBER 15
9 a.m. — Day two of the Air Force Association 2020 Virtual Air, Space & Cyber Conference, with Chief of Space Operations Gen. Jay Raymond; Will Roper, assistant secretary of the Air Force for acquisition, technology and logistics; and others. Full agenda at: https://www.afa.org/events/calendar/2020-09-14/air-space-cyber-conference
9:15 a.m. (new time) — Atlantic Council webinar with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on his recent trip to Central and Eastern Europe. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event
9:15 a.m. House Triangle, U.S. Capitol — Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y.; Rep. Raul Ruiz, D-Calif.; and former VA Secretary David Shulkin news conference on “The Presumptive Benefits for War Fighters Exposed to Burn Pits and Other Toxins Act of 2020,” with comedian and writer Jon Stewart, veterans advocate; and John Feal, veterans advocate.
10 a.m. — Heritage Foundation webinar: “ Transatlantic Cooperation in the COVID-19 Era and Beyond,” with Netherlands Minister of Foreign Affairs Stef Blok. https://www.heritage.org/europe/event
11 a.m. — SETA Foundation at Washington webinar: “Maritime Disputes in the Eastern Mediterranean and International Law,” with Çağrı Erhan, Altınbaş University; Yücel Acer, Professor of International Law, Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt University; and Kadir Ustun, executive director, SETA Foundation. https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register
11 a.m. — Washington Post Live conversation with investigative journalist Bob Woodward, author of Rage, which details the president’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, race relations, diplomacy with North Korea. https://woodwardbook.splashthat.com/
1 p.m. Rayburn 2118 — House Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness hearing: “Addressing the Legacy of Department of Defense use of PFAS: Protecting Our Communities and Implementing Reform,” with Maureen Sullivan, deputy assistant secretary of defense acquisition and sustainment; Terry Rauch, acting deputy assistant secretary of defense health readiness and policy oversight; Herb Nelson, director, Strategic Environment Research and Development Program. https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings
2 p.m. — Brookings Institution webinar: “Defense Policy and the 2020 Election,” with Jessica Mathews, fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace; Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget; Frank Rose, senior fellow at Brookings; and Michael O’Hanlon, senior fellow at Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/events/defense-policy
3 p.m. — Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute virtual launch of the new Center for Freedom and Democracy. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivers keynote remarks, followed by a panel discussion “Retooling Westminster: Advancing Freedom in the 21st Century.” with Reagan Institute Director Roger Zakheim, Amb. Mark Green and Kenneth Wollack with the National Endowment for Democracy. https://www.reaganfoundation.org/programs-events/events-calendar
3 p.m. — Atlantic Council webinar: “Operational Energy Across the Atlantic: U.S. Military and NATO Perspectives,” with Deputy Assistant Air Force Secretary for Operational Energy Roberto Guerrero; former Assistant Defense Secretary for Operational Energy Sharon Burke, senior adviser in the New America International Security Program; Lt. Gen. Eric Wesley, former director of U.S. Army Futures Command’s Futures and Concepts Center; and Julijus Grubliauskas, staff officer in the NATO Hybrid Challenges and Energy Security Section. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event
9 p.m. — ABC News Town Hall, “The President and the People,” with President Trump; ABC News Chief Anchor George Stephanopoulos, and uncommitted voters, at National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pa. https://abcnewspr.tumblr.com/post
WEDNESDAY | SEPTEMBER 16
8:30 a.m. — Heritage Foundation webinar: “Japan’s New Leader Faces China Threat and Other Challenges,” with Tobias Harris, senior vice president of the Sasakawa Peace Foundation USA; Jeffrey Hornung, political scientist at the Rand Corporation; Mireya Solis, chair in Japan studies at the Brookings Institution; and Bruce Klingner, senior research fellow for Northeast Asia at Heritage. https://www.heritage.org/asia/event/virtual-event
9 a.m. — National Democratic Institute webinar: “Democracy, Technology and China: U.S. Strategy for Innovation in the 21st Century,” with Senate Intelligence Vice Chair Mark Warner, D-Va.; former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, chairman of NDI; and Derek Mitchell, president of NDI. https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register
10 a.m. — Defense Secretary Mark Esper delivers remarks to the Air Force Association’s Air, Space and Cyber Conference webcast. https://www.afa.org/events
11 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies webcast: “The Eisenhower Legacy in Space,” with NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine; Susan Eisenhower, CEO and chairman of the Eisenhower Group; and Todd Harrison, director of the CSIS Aerospace Security Project. https://www.csis.org/events/online-event
1 p.m. — Intelligence and National Security Alliance and the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association virtual Intelligence and National Security Summit, with Army Lt. Gen. Bob Ashley, director of the Defense Intelligence Agency; Army Gen. Paul Nakasone, commander of the U.S. Cyber Command and director of the National Security Agency; Christopher Scolese, director, National Reconnaissance Office; and Vice Adm. Bob Sharp, director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency; and Johny Sawyer, chief of staff at the Defense Intelligence Agency https://intelsummit.org/
2 p.m. — McCain Institute “Authors & Insights Book Talk Series”: “Foreign Policy Crossroads: Where We Are and How We Got Here,” with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, author of Hell and Other Destinations: A 21st Century Memoir, and Mark Green. https://asu.zoom.us
6 p.m. — Politics and Prose bookstore book discussion webcast on The Spymasters: How the CIA Directors Shape History and the Future, with author Chris Whipple, CEO of CCWHIP Productions. https://www.politics-prose.com/event
7 p.m. — Curious Iguana bookstore online book discussion on The Liberation of Marguerite Harrison: America’s First Female Foreign Intelligence Agent, with author Elizabeth Atwood, associate professor of journalism at Hood College and former Baltimore Sun reporter and editor. https://www.facebook.com/events/593182521367709
THURSDAY | SEPTEMBER 17
9:30 a.m. SD-G50 Dirksen — Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the budget of the National Nuclear Security Administration, with Lisa Gordon-Hagerty, administrator, National Nuclear Security Administration; Ellen Lord, undersecretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment; and Adm. Chas Richard, commander, U.S. Strategic Command. https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/hearings
10 a.m. — Atlantic Council webinar: “Should Europe Go Its Own Way?” focusing on the European Union, with Kateryna Smagliy, division chief at the Hennadii Udovenko Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine; Stephen Walt, professor of international relations at Harvard University; former U.S. Ambassador to Poland Daniel Fried, fellow at the Atlantic Council; former French Ambassador to the United States Gerard Araud; Jacob Heilbrunn, editor of the National Interest; and Benjamin Haddad, director of the Atlantic Council’s Future of Europe Initiative. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event/should-europe-go-its-own-way
1 p.m. Rayburn 2118 — House Armed Services Subcommittee on Intelligence and Emerging Threats and Capabilities hearing: “Interim Review of the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence Effort and Recommendations,” with Eric Schmidt, chairman, National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, Robert Work, vice chairman, National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence; Mignon Clyburn, commissioner, National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence; José-Marie Griffiths, commissioner, National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence. https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings
1 p.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies webcast: “Information Warfare: U.S. Competition with China,” with Rep. Will Hurd, R-Texas; and Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas. https://www.csis.org/events/online-event
1 p.m. — Intelligence and National Security Alliance and the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association virtual Intelligence and National Security Summit, with Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Melvin Carter, intelligence director at the Marine Corps; Space Force Brig. Gen. Leah Lauderback, intelligence director at the Space Force; Army Maj. Gen. Kate Leahy, assistant deputy chief of staff for intelligence at the Army; Air Force Lt. Gen. Mary O’Brien, deputy chief of staff for intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and cyber effects operations at the Air Force; Coast Guard Rear Adm. Andrew Sugimoto, assistant commandant for intelligence at the Coast Guard; and Navy Vice Adm. Jeffrey Trussler, deputy chief of naval operations for information warfare in the Office of the Director of Naval Intelligence; Doug Cossa, deputy CIO of the Defense Intelligence Agency; Sue Dorr, CIO in the Office of the Director of National Intelligence; Army Brig. Gen. Jeth Rey, director of command and control, communications and computer systems at the U.S. Central Command; and Greg Smithberger, CIO director of the National Security Agency Capabilities Directorate. https://intelsummit.org/
FRIDAY | SEPTEMBER 18
9:30 a.m. — Atlantic Council webinar: “Belarus and Democracy in Europe,” with Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius; Vladimir Kara-Murza, chairman of the Boris Nemtsov Foundation for Freedom; Hanna Liubakova, journalist at Outriders; and Melinda Haring, deputy director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event
MONDAY | SEPTEMBER 21
12 p.m. — Day one of New America and Arizona State University Future Security Forum, a four-day virtual event reimagining national security in the age of COVID-19, with retired Gen. Joseph Votel, former U.S. Central Commander; Michèle Flournoy, former undersecretary of defense for policy; Bonnie Jenkins, founder and president, Women of Color Advancing Peace, Security and Conflict Transformation; Helene Gayle, MD, member, Committee on Equitable Allocation of Vaccine for the Novel Coronavirus, National Academies; Michael Osterholm, director, Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy, University of Minnesota. https://www.newamerica.org/conference/future-security-forum-2020/
TUESDAY | SEPTEMBER 22
1 p.m. — Virtual Book launch of Adaptation Under Fire, with co-authors retired Lt. Gen. David Barno and Nora Bensahel, with discussion by Kori Schake, AEI; Karl Mueller, RAND; Richard Lacquement, U.S. Army War College; moderated by Jim Goldgeier. https://global.oup.com/academic/product/adaptation-under-fire
WEDNESDAY | SEPTEMBER 23
9:30 a.m. SD-562, Dirksen — Senate Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness and Management Support hearing on “Navy and Marine Corps Readiness,” with Navy Secretary Kenneth Braithwaite, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michael Gilday, and Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger. https://www.armed-services.senate.gov/hearings
FRIDAY | SEPTEMBER 25
10 a.m. — “Hack at the Harbor” virtual security conference sponsored by Point3 Security, with speakers including Chris Krebs, director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Department of Homeland Security. https://hackattheharbor.com/
11:30 a.m. — Approximately 70 World War II aircraft will fly over the Washington Mall in two-minute intervals in historically sequenced warbird formations representing the major World War II battles. More than 20 different types of vintage military aircraft are scheduled to take part, including the P-40 Warhawk, P-39 Airacobra, P-38 Lightning, P-51 Mustang, P-47 Thunderbolt, F4U Corsair, B-25 Mitchell, B-17 Flying Fortress, B-29 Superfortress. https://ww2flyover.org/
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“The solution to disinformation is not to freak out that it exists but to get your news from reliable sources and think critically about everything that you hear. There’s no way to hack logic.”
Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, in an interview with MSNBC from in exile in Moscow.
