RED-LETTER DAY: The last time a U.S. defense secretary took the podium in the Pentagon briefing room alongside the joint chiefs chairman to face the cameras and take reporters’ questions was exactly one year ago today: Aug. 28, 2018.
That was one of the rare times that notoriously camera-shy Jim Mattis agreed to conduct a formal briefing in the Pentagon’s commodious but lightly used briefing facility.
At 1:30 p.m. today, Defense Secretary Mark Esper — who has promised to restore the practice of regular press briefings by a department representative — will conduct what used to be a de rigueur event, a joint briefing with Marine Corps Gen. Joseph Dunford, who has a month left on his term as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
ESPER’S PROMISE: On his first day on the job after his Senate confirmation last month, Esper made a point of visiting the press area on the C-ring off the Pentagon’s ninth corridor to say he was ordering that leaders be sent new guidance directing more engagement with the news media, citing his view of “the very important role of the media, the press in our society and in terms of communicating what we are doing.”
A few days later, chief Pentagon spokesman Jonathan Hoffman sent a memo to all senior military and civilian leaders, urging them “to more actively engage with the public.”
“Simply put, the Department benefits when we thoughtfully engage with the American public, Congressional leaders, international community, and the media,” he said in the July 27 memorandum.
ONLY THE BEGINNING: While the State Department has never stopped doing semi-regular press briefings to explain and defend Trump administration policy, the Pentagon fell mostly silent after Mattis’s chief spokeswoman, Dana White, stopped briefing in May of last year.
Two weeks ago, the Pentagon announced Alyssa Farah would take over the job, after two years at the White House as Vice President Mike Pence’s spokeswoman. Farah is expected to arrive at the Pentagon after Labor Day and to eventually conduct on-camera briefings for reporters.
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HAPPENING TODAY: Secretary of State Mike Pompeo meets with Saudi Deputy Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman at the State Department at 1 p.m. Reporters are not invited.
TOUTING ‘AMERICANISM’: Yesterday, Pompeo addressed the American Legion national convention in Indianapolis and expounded on what he called “Americanism,” a word he used 26 times during the course of his speech.
“Americanism means recognizing that America is an exceptional nation,” Pompeo said. “Americanism, too, means confidence in America’s unique role in the world. I see that, as America’s most senior diplomat. It’s guided by our founders’ vision. So, I’m honored to come before an audience that isn’t gonna get squeamish when I tell you that Americanism is something we must be proud of each and every day.”
Pompeo argued that Americanism was not “a code word for narrow-minded nationalism” but rather, he said, “Americanism means standing up for our principles … getting leadership right around the world.”
“Americanism means taking care of our own. We’ve stopped international courts from prosecuting our service members. It was an outrage,” he said. “We brought home dozens of Americans held hostage overseas, more than any other administration in modern history, and without paying any ransom. We’ve used diplomacy to guard our borders from illegal immigration.”
Vice President Mike Pence addresses the group today at 1 p.m.
GETTING AFGHANISTAN RIGHT: With the United States close to announcing a deal with the Taliban that would provide for the withdrawal of thousands of U.S. troops from Afghanistan, Pompeo is trying to reassure nervous critics that the agreement will not mean abandoning the fight against terrorists.
“There are young adults entering college just this week who weren’t even born when the United States started fighting in Afghanistan. It’s our longest war now,” he said. “Our mission there was to defeat al Qaeda, and that we shall do, and that we shall continue to do.”
Pompeo said he doesn’t know how the U.S.-led efforts towards peace and reconciliation will end, but he insisted President Trump has committed to “make sure that we get it right.”
“His clear guidance to me and to my military colleagues is this: We want to get our folks home as fast and in as large numbers as we can, and we want to make sure that never again is terror struck on the United States from that soil.”
PUSHBACK ON PUTIN: President Trump continues to take fire over his defense of Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Group of Seven meetings in France over the weekend, in particular his statement that he would like to invite Putin to next year’s G-7 gathering in the United States, which he hopes will be at his Florida golf resort. “Would I invite him? I would certainly invite him,” Trump said at the event’s closing news conference. “I don’t know that he’d accept. Those are tough circumstances. He was a part of G-8 and all of a sudden … he’s not in … actually that’s a pretty tough thing for him, you know. He’s a proud person.”
“Under no circumstances should Putin be invited to participate in the G7 until the Russian government undertakes demonstrable actions to show its willingness to behave responsibly both domestically and abroad,” said Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, tweeting out a copy of a letter he and three other Senate Democrats fired off to Trump.
The letter, also signed by Bob Menendez of New Jersey, Jack Reed of Rhode Island, and Mark Warner of Virginia, admonished Trump that Russia “does not currently possess the democratic institutions nor the economic capacity to rejoin the Group, and the Putin regime’s actions since its expulsion in 2014 demonstrate that the Russian government is not prepared to productively contribute to the efforts of the G7.”
‘TAKE THE LAND’: The Washington Post is reporting that President Trump is so intent on beginning construction of his border wall with Mexico in time for the 2020 election that he’s told his subordinates he will pardon anyone who runs afoul of the law in fast-tracking the project that has been stymied by Congress and lawsuits.
A White House official told the Post that Trump was “joking” about the pardons. But he is said to be deadly serious about building new sections of the wall to fulfill his campaign promise. Up to now, construction has been limited to improving or replacing 60 miles of existing barrier.
“President Trump is so eager to complete hundreds of miles of border fence ahead of the 2020 presidential election that he has directed aides to fast-track billions of dollars’ worth of construction contracts, aggressively seize private land and disregard environmental rules, according to current and former officials involved with the project,” the story says. “He has waved off worries about contracting procedures and the use of eminent domain, saying ‘take the land,’” the Post reports, citing officials who attended the meetings on the wall.
COMBATING SUICIDE: Later today, Karin Orvis, director of the Pentagon’s Suicide Prevention Office, will unveil Executive Order 13822 on preventing suicide. Orvis is among the officials and experts attending a three-day conference on suicide in Nashville, Tennessee, sponsored by the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Pentagon.
B-2s TO EUROPE: U.S. European Command has announced the deployment of a task force of nuclear-capable B-2 stealth bombers to Great Britain. The batwing bombers will be conducting “theater integration and flying training” from RAF Fairford.
“The deployment of strategic bombers to the U.K. helps exercise RAF Fairford as United States Air Forces in Europe’s forward operating location for bombers,” said a EUCOM statement. “Training with partners, allied nations and other U.S. Air Force units contributes to our readiness and enables us to build enduring and strategic relationships necessary to confront a broad range of global challenges.”
TRUMP SAYS AXIOS MADE UP NUKING HURRICANES STORY: President Trump is still irked about the Axios story that said he asked on multiple occasions if nuclear weapons could be used to deflect hurricanes from hitting the United States.
“Axios (whatever that is) sat back and said GEEEEE, let’s see, what can we make up today to embarrass the President? Then they said, ‘why don’t we say he wants to bomb a hurricane, that should do it!’” Trump tweeted last night. “The media in our Country is totally out of control! “
“I’m just surprised he didn’t own it. MAGA world was fully ready to support Storm Nukes!” tweeted Jonathan Swan, the Axios reporter, who says his scoop was based on multiple sources.
The Rundown
Washington Examiner: Bolton tries to assure Iran hawks jolted by Trump’s olive branch to Tehran
Defense News: Esper calls for new basing investments in the Pacific
Reuters: Russia, Turkey discuss supply of Russian warplanes: RIA
Wall Street Journal: Erdogan Presses Putin on Syrian Offensive
Washington Examiner: Russia denies visa for second US senator
Air Force Magazine: Oracle Takes JEDI Cloud Case to Federal Appeals Court
Foreign Policy: Pentagon Seeks to Counter China’s Drone Edge
Defense News: To Combat China’s Hold On Rare Earth Minerals, Pentagon Looks To Australia
Washington Examiner: Brennan: World leaders think Trump is ‘delusional’
Washington Post: Departing top admiral acknowledges Navy’s struggle with character issues
New York Times: Wanted: Spy. Employer: China. To Apply: Click
Air Force Magazine: Here’s How USAF Will Spend $1B in Disaster Aid
Forbes: Opinion: Five Reasons An Economic Recession Could Be Bad News For The Defense Industry
The Hill: Opinion: Putin built a hypersonic arsenal, while the Pentagon slept
Calendar
WEDNESDAY | AUGUST 28
10 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Avenue N.W. Center for Strategic and International Studies discussion on “The Importance of U.S.-Japan-Korea Trilateral Defense Cooperation,” with Assistant Defense Secretary for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Randall Schriver and Victor Cha, Korea chair at CSIS. www.csis.org/events
12 p.m. 1667 K Street N.W. The Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments discussion on a new report, “Did Dollars Follow Strategy: A Review of the 2020 Defense Budget,” with author Travis Sharp, research fellow at CSBA. csbaonline.org/about/events
1:30 p.m. Pentagon Briefing Room. Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joseph Dunford brief reporters. Livestreamed at www.defense.gov/Watch/Live-Events.
THURSDAY | AUGUST 29
6 p.m. 1750 Independence Avenue S.W. Friends of the National World War II Memorial 75th anniversary commemoration of the liberation of Paris from Nazi Germany, with Susan Eisenhower, granddaughter of former President Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower. wwiimemorialfriends.networkforgood.com/events
7 p.m. 70 District Square S.W. Politics and Prose Bookstore discussion on The Russia Trap: How Our Shadow War with Russia Could Spiral into Nuclear with author George Beebe, director for intelligence and national security at the Center for the National Interest. www.politics-prose.com/events
TUESDAY | SEPTEMBER 3
11:30 a.m. 58 East 68th Street, New York. Council on Foreign Relations discussion with former Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on his new book, Call Sign Chaos: Learning to Lead. www.cfr.org
WEDNESDAY | SEPTEMBER 4
7:30 a.m. 1250 S. Hayes Street, Arlington. Third annual Defense News conference, featuring Matthew Donovan, acting Air Force secretary; Michael Griffin, undersecretary of defense for research and engineering; Ryan McCarthy, acting Army secretary; Gen. James McConville, Army chief of staff; and many others. conference.defensenews.com/agenda
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Take the land. … Don’t worry, I’ll pardon you.”
President Trump’s “joking” comments about fast-tracking construction of a border wall with Mexico, as reported by the Washington Post, citing unnamed officials in meetings with Trump.
