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REMEMBERING McCAIN: Sen. John McCain will be buried on the grounds of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis in a private service on Sunday, after a week in which he will be honored in his home state of Arizona and in a memorial service at the National Cathedral in Washington. Former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama will be among those delivering the eulogies. Here are the plans for the week: Wednesday: McCain’s body will lie in state in Phoenix, on what would have been his 82nd birthday, according to a tweet from the governor yesterday. “Senator #JohnMcCain will lie in state here at the Arizona Capitol this Wednesday — his birthday. This is a rare and distinct occurrence for a truly special man. John McCain is Arizona, and we will honor his life every way we can,” said Gov. Doug Ducey. Thursday: A memorial service will be held at North Phoenix Baptist Church at 10 a.m. before McCain’s body is flown to Washington. Former Vice President Joe Biden is scheduled to speak. Friday: McCain will lie in state at the U.S. Capitol Rotunda with a formal ceremony and time for the public to pay respects beginning at 11 a.m. Saturday: A procession will pass the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and arrive for a funeral at Washington National Cathedral at 10 a.m. Sunday: Private funeral service and burial at the Naval Academy. At his request he will be laid to rest alongside Naval Academy classmate and lifelong friend, Chuck Larson, overlooking the Severn River. TRUMP HAS LITTLE TO SAY: McCain’s death on Saturday did little to soften President Trump’s bitterness toward the senator, who was his harshest Republican critic, and who Trump never forgave for casting the deciding vote that killed the Republican effort to repeal Obamacare back when it could be done with a simple majority in the Senate. During the campaign, Trump famously disparaged McCain as not a real hero, and lately as the senator was in his final days, continued to make reference to what he saw as a betrayal on the crucial Obamacare vote during campaign-style rallies. Yesterday, Trump tweeted condolences to the McCain family, but said nothing about the life of legacy of the storied senator. He also reportedly nixed an official White House statement that would have recognized McCain’s record of service to the nation, deciding a simple tweet, expressing “deepest sympathies and respect” and “hearts and prayers” would suffice. The enmity went both ways. White House officials have confirmed reports that McCain’s family requested a few months ago that Trump not attend services. Vice President Mike Pence is expected to attend. McCAIN’S SUCCESSOR: There will be no replacing McCain, but his seat will be filled by a temporary appointment made by Ducey. Under law Ducey must appoint a Republican. While McCain was in the last months of his life, the governor steadfastly refused to say anything about who he might be considering to fill out the term, which runs until 2020. He now says he won’t announce his decision until next week, after McCain is buried. He has ruled out one possible candidate: Himself. ON A PERSONAL NOTE: One thing that was clear after McCain’s death was announced in an email from his office Saturday night: Pretty much every reporter in town who ever covered McCain had a personal photo with the late senator, and a story to tell about his charm. Despite his sometimes cantankerous disposition and quick temper, his compelling personal story, and often self-deprecating humor made him a media darling. McCain may be loved even more in death than he was in life, especially among those who were subject to his sometimes self-righteous scorn. But what reporters found irresistible about him is that in a town of phonies he seemed like the real deal. His stands against torture and tyrants, along with his willingness to buck his own party on matters of moral principle, made the label maverick seem more than just a cliché. I traveled with McCain several times to the annual Munich Conference on Security policy and let me tell you, McCain’s plane — filled with his hand-picked delegation of House and Senate members — was the place to be. The free-flowing conversations were off the record, and many others who had a much closer relationship with McCain no doubt have much better stories. But what always impressed me about John McCain was how he always tried to rise above partisan politics and his own self-interest to do the right thing. Though far from perfect, he seemed to me to be the embodiment of the advice I was given as a young man: “Knowing the right thing to do is not the hard part. The hard part is doing the right thing.” Here is the obituary I wrote about McCain’s remarkable life. Good Monday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre), National Security Writer Travis J. Tritten (@travis_tritten) and Senior Editor David Brown (@dave_brown24). Email us here for tips, suggestions, calendar items and anything else. If a friend sent this to you and you’d like to sign up, click here. 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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AFGHAN PEACE HOPES FADE: A week has passed and there’s no sign the Taliban are willing to accept President Ashraf Ghani’s offer of a two-month cease-fire, and instead will be joining Russia and representatives of several neighboring countries for talks next month in Moscow. Neither the U.S. nor Afghanistan will take part in the talks Sept 4. Afghan Foreign Ministry spokesman Sibghatullah Ahmadi told The Associated Press in Kabul that the government will not attend the meeting in Moscow, saying the peace process should be Afghan-led. He also said that “a peace process without the cooperation of the Afghan government would not be successful.” Last week a State Department official who asked not to be named told the AP that the U.S. rejected an invitation to join Russia-led talks on Afghanistan because they are unlikely to help bring peace. SENIOR ISIS-K LEADER KILLED: A senior leader of the Afghanistan branch of the Islamic State was killed on Saturday in a U.S. airstrike. Chief U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Martin O’Donnell confirmed that an airstrike targeted Abu Sayeed Orakzai on Friday. A tweet from Ghani’s deputy spokesperson confirmed Orakzai’s death. NORTH KOREA TRIP IS OFF: In a tacit acknowledgement that negotiations with Kim Jong Un are not going as well as initially hoped, Trump told Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Friday to cancel his latest trip to North Korea, citing the regime’s insufficient progress on dismantling its nuclear weapons program and blaming escalating tensions between the U.S. and China. “I have asked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo not to go to North Korea, at this time, because I feel we are not making sufficient progress with respect to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” the president announced in a series of tweets. “Additionally, because of our much tougher Trading stance with China, I do not believe they are helping with the process of denuclearization as they once were.” CHINA’S PLAN: Meanwhile, China is laying the groundwork to establish naval outposts in strategic locations around the United States, according to a senior Republican lawmaker. “They’re positioning themselves in all the different ports — in the Straits of Malacca, in the South China Sea,” said Rep. Ted Yoho, who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific and also sits on the subcommittee for the Western Hemisphere. “Then you bolster that up with ships in El Salvador, possible ships in Cuba, possible ships in Haiti. … I think it’s a big cause for concern.” NASA BACKS SPACE FORCE: Trump’s Space Force proposal would help prevent the U.S. energy grid from going dark in an emergency or an attack, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said in an exclusive interview with the Washington Examiner. Bridenstine argued that a disruption of America’s satellite assets would pose an “existential threat” to the grid, meaning that a Space Force is needed more than ever. “Every banking transaction requires a timing signal from GPS,” he said. “In other words, if there is no GPS, there is no banking in the United States. Everything shuts down.” RENAMING RUSSELL? In a statement Saturday night, Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer said he thinks the Senate’s Russell office building should be renamed for McCain, so that “generations remember him.” “Nothing will overcome the loss of Senator McCain, but so that generations remember him I will be introducing a resolution to rename the Russell building after him,” Schumer said in a statement issued shortly after McCain’s death. “As you go through life, you meet few truly great people. John McCain was one of them. His dedication to his country and the military were unsurpassed, and maybe most of all, he was a truth teller — never afraid to speak truth to power in an era where that has become all too rare.” The building, where McCain had his office, is named for former Georgia Democratic Sen. Richard Russell, who died in 1971 after serving 40 years in Congress. THE RUNDOWN AP: In familiar dance, Turkey warms to Russia as US ties unravel Washington Post: Baghdad gets its groove back – Violence is receding and Iraq’s capital is partying again New York Times: Trump’s Cancellation of Pompeo Trip Dashes Hopes in South Korea AFP: John McCain’s Hanoi Hilton jailor recalls ‘stubborn’ POW Military Times: National Guard troops may see even more missions in South America following Mattis trip to the region Washington Post: The modern nuclear arsenal: A nuclear weapons expert describes a new kind of Cold War Defense Tech: With New Command, Army Launches Most Sweeping Reorg Effort Since Vietnam Breaking Defense: How McCain & Milley Created Army Futures Command: It Almost Didn’t Happen DoD Buzz: All KC-10 Extender Refueling Aircraft Affected by Slide-Raft Issue: Air Force Politico: Navy re-establishes Atlantic fleet to check Russia |
CalendarMONDAY | AUG. 27 8 a.m. 2121 Crystal Dr. Electronics Division Meeting. ndia.org 1 p.m. 2101 Wilson Blvd. Industry Dialogue – Shay Assad, Director of Defense Pricing, Defense Procurement and Acquisition Policy. ndia.org 1 p.m. 5000 Seminary Rd. iFest 2018 with Fred Drummond, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Force Education and Training. Ndia.org TUESDAY | AUG. 28 7:30 a.m. 5000 Seminary Rd. iFest 2018. ndia.org 8 a.m. 2401 M St. NW. Defense Writers Group Breakfast with Thomas Modly, Under Secretary of the Navy. 8 a.m. 2121 Crystal Dr. Electronics Division Meeting. ndia.org 10:15 a.m. Foundation for Defense of Democracies National Security Summit (invite only). defenddemocracy.org WEDNESDAY | AUG. 29 7:30 a.m. 5000 Seminary Rd. iFest 2018. ndia.org 8 a.m. 2401 M St. NW. Defense Writers Group Breakfast with Army Secretary Mark Esper. 10 a.m. 1779 Massachusetts Ave. NW. The U.S.-India 2+2: A Conversation with Randall Schriver, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs. carnegieendowment.org THURSDAY | AUG. 30 10 a.m. 1211 Connecticut Ave. NW. Taiwan’s New Southbound Policy: Signaling Foreign Policy Restraint. stimson.org |
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