NDAA CUED UP: House and Senate negotiations have resolved differences on the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act, the overarching policy bill that determines how the Pentagon can spend its money, once it gets it. The final details will be worked out later today, and the bill will be introduced, setting up a vote later this week, according to Alabama Republican Rep. Mike Rogers, one of the initial proponents of a separate space corps.
“We have been informed yesterday that the NDAA does have a final agreement,” Rogers said at the Reagan National Security Forum over the weekend. “We’ll be signing the conference report out Monday afternoon and introducing the bill Monday night and then voting on it on Wednesday. So the hay’s not in the barn, but it’s real close to the barn door,” he said.
QUID PRO QUO: The bill will include one of President Trump’s top priorities: establishing a Space Force, not just as a separate combatant command, but as a new, sixth branch of the armed forces under the Air Force, in the same way the Marine Corps is under the Department of the Navy.
Because Space Force was Trump’s signature issue, Democrats were able to effectively use it as a bargaining chip to add a big non-defense related provision in the must-pass bill. In return for authorizing the Space Force, Republican conferees agreed to give 12 weeks of paid parental leave to millions of federal workers to care for a new baby or for an adopted child.
AUTHORIZATION VS APPROPRIATION: The NDAA is only half of the funding equation. It authorizes spending but it takes an appropriations bill to actually free up the money budgeted for this fiscal year which began Oct. 1. As the end of the first quarter of the budget year approaches, the Pentagon and other federal agencies are still limited by a Continuing Resolution or CR, that freezes spending at last year’s level
“Unfortunately we are still operating at a level $19 billion below the top line. In fact, we continue to lose nearly $5 billion in buying power for every quarter we remain in a CR,” said Defense Secretary Mark Esper at the Reagan forum Saturday. “This must end. That is why I continue to call on Congress to pass an appropriations bill that provides our service members the support they deserve and allows the department to fully implement the national defense strategy.”
“Continuing resolutions are killers for us,” he said. “Every day under a CR is a day we’re competing with Russia and China with one hand tied behind our back.”
Good Monday 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 Susan Katz Keating (@SKatzKeating). 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: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky sits down with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Paris for talks about ending the war between Ukraine and Russian backed forces in the eastern part of the country.
It will be Zeleznky’s first face-to-face meeting with Putin since the comedian-turned-politician was elected to the role the actor played on a popular Ukrainian television show, and the Washington Examiner’s Joel Gehrke reports from Paris that among the items under discussion is the question of whether armed Russian forces will be present for a high-stakes election in eastern Ukraine.
“This is the trap the Russians want to set for Zelensky: they want to have elections when Russian forces and [Russian-led forces] are still there,” a former senior U.S. official who is in touch with European officials told the Washington Examiner on condition of anonymity.
ALSO TODAY: Army Command Sgt. Maj. John Wayne Troxell, senior enlisted advisor to the chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, makes a farewell appearance in the Pentagon briefing room, taking part in an on camera panel discussion on emerging warfighting domains of space and cyberspace. Troxel is retiring after 37 years of active-duty service, and will be replaced by Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Ramon Colon-Lopez.
The panel discussion may be live streamed by Pentagon at 3:15 p.m., followed by a valedictory news conference by Troxel at 4:15 p.m. Check https://www.defense.gov/Watch/Live-Events/ for updates.
AN ACT OF TERRORISM: The FBI has designated the attack that killed three people Friday at the Pensacola naval base Friday as an act of terror. Reports say the gunman is 21-year-old Saudi Air Force Lt. Mohammed Alshamrani, and that he clashed with one of his U.S. instructors earlier this year and made anti-American posts on Twitter shortly before the shooting.
He apparently had gone on Twitter shortly before the shooting to blast U.S. support of Israel, and accuse America of being anti-Muslim, a U.S. official said Sunday as the FBI confirmed it is operating on the assumption the attack was an act of terrorism.
On Fox News Sunday, Secretary Esper said he has ordered a full review of vetting procedures for foreign nationals training at U.S. military facilities, in a directive he issued Saturday. “I ask that we begin review of what our screening procedures are with regard to foreign nationals coming to the United States,” Esper said. “ My understanding is currently, of course, they are reviewed by Department of State, they are reviewed by Department of Homeland Security, and they are reviewed by us. And I want to make sure that those procedures are full and sufficient.”
Related: ‘Died a hero’: Wounded Naval Academy graduate helped stop attack at Florida base
RELATIONS UNAFFECTED: “We have strong military-to-military ties,” Esper said Friday immediately after the shootings. “That’s the basis of our relationship with the Saudis. I don’t see this undermining” the military-to-military relationship.
President Trump said he spoke directly with the king of Saudi Arabia on Friday. “They are devastated in Saudi Arabia,″ he told reporters Saturday as he left for Florida. He said the king “will be involved in taking care of families and loved ones. He feels very strongly.″
On Fox, Esper said there are no plans to curtail the program which trains up to 5,000 military officers from more than 150 countries each year.
“These types of programs, exchanges are very important to our national security. We have something that our potential adversaries such as Russia and China don’t have, which is an elaborate system of alliances and partnerships,” he said. “The ability to bring foreign students here to train with us, to understand American culture is very important to us, building those long-term relationships that keep us safer.”
DE-NUKING ‘OFF THE TABLE’: With Friday’s statement from North Korea’s ambassador to the United Nations Kim Song that “denuclearization is already gone out of the negotiation table,” prospects for any breakthrough have dimmed.
The ambassador also dismissed White House’s attempts to keep talks open, according to Reuters.
“The alleged ‘sustained and substantial dialogue’ claimed by the United States is none other than a time-saving trick to make expedient use of the DPRK-U.S. dialogue solely in its domestic political agenda,” Kim said.
Yesterday North Korea announced it carried out a “a very weighty test” at its long-range rocket launch site Saturday, which it claimed “will have an important effect on changing the strategic position of the DPRK once again in the near future.”
TRUMP’S RESPONSE: “We’ll see about North Korea. I’d be surprised if North Korea acted hostilely,” Trump told reporters Friday, insisting Kim Jong Un knows better than to provoke the U.S. “He knows I have an election coming up. I don’t think he wants to interfere with that, but we’ll have to see … I think he’d like to see something happen. The relationship is very good, but you know, there is a certain hostility, there’s no question about it.”
ANOTHER PEAK BEHIND THE CURTAIN: Another book, another anecdote based on anonymous sources. This one is from CNN analyst Peter Bergen’s new book Trump and His Generals: The Cost of Chaos, in which he relates how Trump reacted early in his presidency when shown a satellite picture of the Korean peninsula at night in which the bright lights of Seoul stood in stark contrast to the darkness in the north and a solitary pinpoint of light over Pyongyang.
Trump focused on the image of South Korea and its capital, Seoul. The distance from the North Korean border to Seoul was only 15 miles. Trump remarked, “Why is Seoul so close to the North Korean border?”
The President had been regularly briefed that North Korea possessed vast artillery batteries that, in the event of war, could kill millions in Seoul. The photo seemed to bring the briefings home. “They have to move,” he said, referring to the inhabitants of Seoul.
The officials in the Oval Office weren’t sure if Trump was joking. Trump repeated, “They have to move!” Seoul, with a population of 10 million, has roughly as many residents as Sweden. Was the President seriously suggesting 10 million people needed to leave their homes in Seoul and move elsewhere? No one knew what to say.
The Rundown
Washington Post: U.S. officials misled public about Afghan war, confidential documents reveal
Washington Examiner: American student freed from Iranian prison after three years
AP: Father: Navy victim shot standing watch fresh from boot camp
Washington Post: Trump’s Excellent Space Force Adventure, You laugh — but his proposal for a new military branch really could make America safe again
Yonhap News Agency: Trump’s Security Adviser Warns U.S. Has ‘Plenty Of Tools’ To Deal With North Korea
Military Times: Trump Needs To Jump Start Negotiations With Iran, Defense Secretaries Warn
AP: Iran Says New Budget Bucks U.S. Oil Embargo, Uses Russian Loan
Defense One: Amazon’s Bezos Hits Silicon Valley For Not Working With Pentagon
Defense News: With China Gunning For Aircraft Carriers, U.S. Navy Says It Must Change How It Fights
Newport News Daily Press: 52 Years Later, Caroline Kennedy Christens Another Aircraft Carrier Named For Her Father
Defense News: Here’s What You Need To Know About The U.S. Navy’s New Deadly (And Expensive) Attack Subs
New York Times: Trump Brings 2 Officers He Cleared of War Crimes Onstage at Fund-Raiser
New York Times: Air Force Aims to Deploy a New Battlefield Weapon: Faster Communications
AP: Minnesota National Guard identifies 3 killed in copter crash
Calendar
MONDAY | DECEMBER 9
9:15 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. N.W. — Center for Strategic and International Studies Global Leaders Forum with Finnish Minister of Defense Antti Kaikkonen. https://www.csis.org/events
12 p.m. 1201 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W. — Hudson Institute book discussion on “Shatter the Nations: ISIS and the War for the Caliphate,” with author Mike Giglio, staff writer at The Atlantic; and Blaise Misztal, fellow at Hudson https://www.hudson.org/events
12 p.m. U.S. Capitol — Middle East Forum discussion on “Is Turkey Coming Back? Updating U.S. Policy,” with Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla.; Ilan Berman, vice president of the American Foreign Policy Council; and Daniel Pipes, president of MEF. https://www.meforum.org/activities/events
3 p.m. 1030 15th St. N.W. — Atlantic Council discussion on “The Transatlantic Partnership in 2020: A European Perspective,” with French Ambassador to the United States Philippe Etienne; and Estonian Ambassador to the United States Jonatan Vseviov. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event
TUESDAY | DECEMBER 10
8 a.m. 2201 G St. N.W. — Defense Writers Group Breakfast with Air Force Gen. Tod Wolters, Supreme NATO Commander and U.S. European Commander. https://nationalsecuritymedia.gwu.edu/
9 a.m. 740 15th St. N.W. — New America discussion on “Coming Home: Dialogues on the Moral, Psychological, and Spiritual Impacts of War,” with retired Army Lt. Col. Bill Edmonds, author of “God is Not Here: A Soldier’s Struggle with Torture, Trauma, and the Moral Injuries of War”; former Maj. Ian Fishback, Ph.D. candidate at the University of Michigan; Jesse Kirkpatrick, research assistant professor at George Mason University; retired Army National Guard Lt. Col. Michael Manning, national security fellow at Tufts University’s Fletcher School; Kate McGraw, deputy chief of the Defense Health Agency’s Psychological Health Center of Excellence; Nancy Sherman, professor of philosophy at Georgetown University; former Special Assistant to the President Drew Trojanowski; David Wood, former Future of War fellow at New America; and Daniel Rothenberg, senior fellow at New America. https://www.newamerica.org
9:15 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. N.W. — Center for Strategic and International Studies and the Defense-Industrial Initiatives Group, “New Generation of Partnership in the U.S.-ROK Alliance Conference.” with Assistant Defense Secretary for Acquisition Kevin Fahey; and Jung-hong Wang, administration manager of the Korea Defense Acquisition Program. http://www.csis.org
12 p.m. 1211 Connecticut Ave. N.W. — Stimson Center discussion on “The New North Korea: Security Implications of North Korea’s Social Changes,” with Zheng Jiyong, director of Fudan University’s Center for Korean Studies; William Overholt, senior research fellow at Harvard University; and Jenny Town, managing editor of the Stimson Center’s 38 North. https://www.stimson.org/content
2 p.m. 2118 Rayburn — House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel Hearing: “Diversity in Recruiting and Retention: Increasing Diversity in the Military – What the Military Services are Doing,” with Army Lt. Gen. Thomas Seamands, deputy chief of staff, G-1; Vice Adm. John Nowell, chief of naval personnel; Air Force Lt. Gen Brian Kelly, deputy chief of staff for manpower, personnel and services; and Marine Lt. Gen. Michael Rocco, deputy commandant for manpower and reserve affairs. https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings
3:30 p.m. 1030 15th St. N.W. — Atlantic Council discussion on a new report, “A Candle in the Dark: U.S. National Security Strategy for Artificial Intelligence,” with co-author Tate Nurkin, nonresident senior fellow in the CSIS Center for Strategy and Security; and co-author Stephen Rodriguez, nonresident senior fellow in the CSIS Center for Strategy and Security. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event
5 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. N.W. — Center for Strategic and International Studies “Schieffer Series” discussion on “The Syria Withdrawal and Next Steps,” with Nancy Youssef, national security correspondent at the Wall Street Journal; Melissa Dalton, director of the CSIS Cooperative Defense Project; Seth Jones, director of the CSIS Transnational Threats Project; Brian Katz, fellow in the CSIS International Security Program; and Bob Schieffer, former host of CBS News’ “Face the Nation” http://www.csis.org
5 p.m. 1776 I St. N.W. —Nuclear Threat Initiative discussion on “The President and Nuclear Weapons: Authorities, Limits, and Process,” with former Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz, co-chair of NTI; former Sen. Sam Nunn, D-Ga., co-chair of NTI; Mary DeRose, professor at Georgetown University Law Center; and Ashley Nicolas, graduate of the Georgetown University Law Center https://www.tfaforms.com
WEDNESDAY | DECEMBER 11
9:15 a.m. 1201 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W. — Hudson Institute discussion on “Iran’s Deadly Repression and the U.S. Response,” with Tony Badran, research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies; Mariam Memarsadeghi, co-director of Tavaana; Blaise Misztal, fellow at Hudson; and Michael Doran, senior fellow at Hudson. http://www.hudson.org
10 a.m. 2118 Rayburn — House Armed Services Committee hearing: “U.S. Policy in Syria and the Broader Region,” with Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley. https://armedservices.house.gov/hearings
12:30 p.m. 1777 F St. N.W. — Council on Foreign Relations discussion with Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., on the future of U.S. foreign policy, as part of the Election 2020 Series. Livestream at https://www.cfr.org/event
4 p.m. 1030 15th St. N.W. — Atlantic Council discussion on a new report, “Aviation Cybersecurity: Scoping the Challenges,” with Assistant Air Force Secretary for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Will Roper; Alan Pellegrini, CEO of Thales North America; Harley Geiger, director of public policy at Rapid7; Sidd Gejji, supervisory information technology specialist in the FAA’s Office of the Chief Information Security Officer; Andreas Meyer, cybersecurity officer for aviation security policy at the International Civil Aviation Organization; Olivia Stella, senior analyst for aviation cybersecurity and the Internet of Things at American Airlines; Matthew Kroenig, deputy director for strategy in the Atlantic Council’s Center for Strategy and Security; and Peter Cooper, senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event
THURSDAY | DECEMBER 12
8 a.m. 1700 Richmond Hwy. — Armed Force Communications and Electronics Association Air Force Information Technology Day, with Defense Department CIO Dana Deasy; Air Force Chief Data Officer Eileen Vidrine; Defense Information Systems Agency Military Deputy Maj. Gen. Garret Yee; and Assistant Air Force Deputy Chief of Staff for Cyber Effects Operations Maj. Gen. Kevin Kennedy. https://nova.afceachapters.org/event
9 a.m. 1030 15th St. N.W. — The Atlantic Council discussion “One Year into the United States’ Maximum Pressure Campaign on Iran,” with Knut Dethlefsen, representative to the United States and Canada at Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung; David Jalilvand, CEO of Orient Matters; Azadeh Zamirirad, deputy head of the German Institute for International and Security Affairs’ Middle East and Africa Division; Narges Bajoghli, assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies; Barbara Slavin, director of the Atlantic Council’s Future of Iran Initiative; and former U.S. Ambassador to the European Union Stuart Eizenstat, board director at the Atlantic Council. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org
3 p.m. — Defense One and Nextgov webcast “Securing the Digital Landscape,” with Frank Konieczny, chief information technology officer in the Office of the Secretary of the Air Force; Michael Sorrento, director of the Defense Department’s Defense Manpower Data Center; Jordan Kasper, digital service expert at the Defense Digital Service; and Patrick Turner, technology editor at Defense One. https://www.govexec.com
6:30 p.m. 700 L’Enfant Plaza S.W. — International Spy Museum book discussion on “The Right Kind of Crazy: My Life as a Navy SEAL, Covert Operative and Boy Scout from Hell,” author Clint Emerson, https://www.spymuseum.org/calendar
FRIDAY | DECEMBER 13
9 a.m. 1301 K St. N.W. — Washington Post Live conversation with former Defense Secretary retired Gen. Jim Mattis with Washington Post columnist David Ignatius. https://www.washingtonpost.com/post-live
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Ms. Ronstadt, thank you and congratulations. And I will say my job, as I travel the world – I just want to know, when I will be loved?”
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo speaking at dinner for this year’s Kennedy Center honorees, which includes singer Linda Ronstadt.
