‘WE’RE RUNNING OUT OF TIME’: A compromise that would rescind the COVID-19 vaccine mandate for U.S. troops has paved the way for the $858 billion National Defense Authorization Act to pass in the lame-duck session of Congress, which ends this month.
The annual “must-pass” bill sets defense policy and provides the authority to spend $45 billion over what the Biden administration requested for fiscal 2023, which began Oct. 1. But the authorization is only half the process, and the omnibus spending bill that actually appropriates the money remains bogged down over partisan bickering and a push by Republicans to postpone passage until they take charge in January and have more bargaining power.
“We’re going to work doggedly until we come to an agreement,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY). “Leader McConnell and I have agreed to try and work together to make sure we get a yearlong omnibus funding bill done. We hope it can be done this year.”
But in a separate news conference yesterday, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) was decidedly more pessimistic. “We have not been able to agree on a top line yet, and I think it’s becoming increasingly likely that we may need to do a short-term [continuing resolution] into early next year,” he said. “We’re running out of time, and that may end up being the only option left that we could agree to pursue.”
CONGRESSIONAL ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEES RELEASE TEXT OF DEFENSE FUNDING BILL
THE VACCINE COMPROMISE: House and Senate negotiations released the final text of the 2023 NDAA, which will now get a vote in both chambers before being sent to the president.
The key victory for Republicans was the provision that will compel the Pentagon to drop its requirement that all active-duty and reserve troops be vaccinated against COVID-19 or face dismissal.
The provision stops short of ordering reinstatement of the thousands of service members who have been discharged over the past two years, but it does ensure they receive the full veterans and other benefits to which they are entitled and can have their discharge records corrected.
“In addition, the military departments have the ability to consider applications for reinstatement of servicemembers who were previously separated for refusing the vaccine,” the Senate Armed Services Committee said in an explanatory statement.
HOUSE POISED TO END PENTAGON’S COVID-19 VACCINE MANDATE IN LATEST NDAA
REPUBLICAN WINS: In the final bill, Republicans beat back a number of Democratic proposals, including another push to force women to register for the draft, give the mayor of Washington, D.C., control over D.C. National Guard, and require the military’s TRICARE medical system to provide free emergency contraception to all beneficiaries at retail pharmacies.
The bill was named this year for retiring Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK), ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, who touted the conservative wins in a press release.
“As I near the close of my time here in Congress, ensuring our troops have what they need is my No. 1 priority,” he said. “Conservatives in Oklahoma and across the United States can be proud of what we secured in this year’s bill to protect our country from threats like China and Russia and give our troops what they need to complete their mission.”
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HAPPENING TODAY: On this 81st anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Adm. Christopher Grady, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will deliver remarks at a remembrance day observance at the World War II Memorial on Independence Avenue, just south of the White House.
It was 7:48 a.m. on Dec. 7, 1941, when the first of two waves of some 360 Japanese fighters, bombers, and torpedo planes launched from six aircraft carriers north of Oahu and attacked what was then the U.S. territory of Hawaii.
The surprise attack killed 2,403 Americans and destroyed 169 aircraft and two battleships while crippling more than a dozen other ships. In a stroke of luck, the carriers USS Enterprise, USS Saratoga, and USS Lexington were at sea on maneuvers and were not spotted by the Japanese, according to an account of the attack, which brought the United States into World War II.
ALSO TODAY: Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) is holding a virtual press conference at 11 a.m. to tout what she called “historic reforms in this year’s National Defense Authorization Act,” her pet cause being reform on the military justice system.
“This year’s NDAA removes all judicial functions and prosecutorial duties from commanders for covered offenses,” Gillibrand said, a change she spent more than a decade fighting for. “While last year’s defense bill
did make some important changes, giving some powers to the Office of Special Trial Counsel, it left many critical powers with commanders. The modified amendment removed the remaining powers and reallocated them to other officers.”
BLINKEN: ‘NEITHER ENCOURAGED NOR ENABLED’: In the wake of Ukraine’s brazen strike on air bases deep inside Russia and Moscow’s limited options for retaliation, there are increasing questions about the Biden administration’s reluctance to provide longer-range weapons.
Monday’s strike on bases, which damaged Russian nuclear-capable bombers, was apparently carried out by using retooled Soviet-era jet-powered surveillance drones that effectively evaded Russia’s sophisticated air defenses, demonstrating an ability to strike Moscow itself.
“We have neither encouraged nor enabled the Ukrainians to strike inside of Russia,” said Secretary of State Antony Blinken at a press conference with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and their Australian counterparts. “But the important thing is to understand what Ukrainians are living through every day with the ongoing Russian aggression against their country and our determination to make sure that they have in their hands, along with many other partners around the world, the equipment that they need to defend themselves to defend their territory, to defend their freedom.”
At the State Department, spokesman Ned Price said the U.S. position, aimed at preventing the fighting in Ukraine from escalating into a full-blown war between Russia and NATO, had not changed.
“We have not provided Ukraine with weapons that it is to use inside of Russia. We have been very clear that these are defensive supplies,” Price said. “We are not enabling Ukraine to strike beyond its borders. We are not encouraging Ukraine to strike beyond its borders.
“The Ukrainians have demonstrated their effectiveness. They have demonstrated their grit, their determination to wrest back the territory that Russia has illegally seized from Ukrainian authorities. We are providing Ukraine with precisely what it needs to achieve those goals.”
‘DRONE STRIKE’ HITS RUSSIAN AIRFIELD DAY AFTER OTHER MILITARY AIR BASES TARGETED
RUSSIA PREPARES TO DEFEND AGAINST UKRAINIAN INVASION: In what the British Defense Ministry suggested may be a propaganda move to reassure its population, Russian forces are digging new defensive fortification on its territory along the border with Ukraine in its Belgorod region.
“Trench digging has been reported in Belgorod since at least April 2022, but the new constructions are probably more elaborate systems, designed to rebuff mechanized assault,” the ministry said in its daily Twitter update.
“There is a realistic possibility that the Russian authorities are promoting defensive preparations within internationally recognised Russian territory to burnish patriotic feeling,” the assessment said. “However, it probably illustrates some Russia decision-makers’ genuine (but false) belief that there is a credible threat of invasion by Ukrainian forces.”
RUSSIA OBJECTS TO UN NUCLEAR WATCHDOG TAKING CONTROL OF UKRAINIAN POWER PLANT
The Rundown
Washington Examiner: Congressional Armed Services Committees release text of defense funding bill
Washington Examiner: House poised to end Pentagon’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate in latest NDAA
Washington Examiner: ‘Drone strike’ hits Russian airfield day after other military air bases targeted
Washington Examiner: Russia objects to UN nuclear watchdog taking control of Ukrainian power plant
Washington Examiner: Rubio calls US investment in CCP-controlled companies ‘a serious threat’ to security
Washington Examiner: ‘More important things going on’: Biden defends not visiting border on Arizona trip
Washington Examiner: Biden administration eyes limits on asylum as border policy set to expire
Washington Examiner: Libertarian organization tops $3.5 million in aid to Ukraine
Washington Examiner: Top Biden DHS official faces ethics complaint over potentially illegal Twitter post
AP: Turkey says Finland must end arms embargo to join NATO
Defense One: Ending COVID-Vax Mandate Would Divide Troops Into Two Classes, Navy Secretary Says
USNI News: Compromise $857B Defense Policy Bill Authorizes 11 Battle Force Ships, $25M For Nuclear Cruise Missile Research
Inside Defense: DOD Details $1.26B in Unfunded Munitions Priorities and Other Shortfalls Nested in $25B End-of-year List
USNI News: Bill Defining Navy’s Role Pave’s Way for Bigger Budgets, Says Author Rep. Gallagher
Wall Street Journal: Blinken Says Goal Is to Push Russia Back to Prewar Lines
Defense One: Explosions at Russian Air Bases May Change Several Nations’ Calculations
Air & Space Forces Magazine: DNI Skeptical Russia Can Reconstitute Effectively for Spring Offensive
u>Wall Street Journal: Relentless Strikes Rattle Kherson Residents
New York Times: Germany Arrests Dozens Suspected of Planning to Overthrow Government
New York Times: Xi To Visit Saudis For 3 Summits, In A Sign Of China’s Growing Mideast Ties
AP: China Blasts U.S. Report, Reiterates ‘No First Use’ Nuke Policy
Business Insider: The U.S.’s Experimental ‘Lighting Carriers’ Are ‘Much More Capable’ Than China’s Current Carriers, Top US Admiral Says
Reuters: U.S. To Boost Taiwan’s Stretched Air Force With $428 Mln In Spare Parts
Navy Times: Navy lowers entrance exam requirements in bid to get more recruits
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Air Force Working on Fuel-Saving, 3D-Printed ‘Microvanes’ for C-17
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Troops Will See Record Food Allowance Increase In 2023
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Weapons & Platforms: B-21 Raider
Breaking Defense: After Months of Drama, France, Germany Resolve Industrial Fight over Next-gen Fighter
19fortyfive.com: Russia Has No Way to Win the Ukraine War
19fortyfive.com: H-20: Could This Be China’s Version of the B-21 Raider Bomber?
19fortyfive.com: Could Russia Somehow Get Rid of Putin?
19fortyfive.com: The Ukraine War: Now the Ultimate Drone War?
19fortyfive.com: Meet ARRW: The U.S. Air Force Is Going All in on Hypersonic Weapons
Calendar
WEDNESDAY | DECEMBER 7
8:30 a.m. — German Marshall Fund of the U.S. virtual discussion: ”The role of NATO allies in supporting and defending Ukraine against Russian aggression,” with Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte https://www.gmfus.org/event/conversation-prime-minister-lithuania
9 a.m. — Brookings Institution virtual discussion: “South Korean foreign policy in the Indo-Pacific,” with Victor Cha, Korea chairman at the Center for Strategic and International Studies; Kuyoun Chung, assistant professor of political science at Kangwon National University; Andrew Yeo, senior fellow at the Brookings Center for East Asia Policy Studies; and Mireya Solis, director of the Brookings Center for East Asia Policy Studies https://www.brookings.edu/events/south-korean-foreign-policy-in-the-indo-pacific/
10:30 a.m. — U.S. Institute of Peace virtual discussion: “Prosecuting the Crime of Aggression in Ukraine,” with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky; Ukrainian Ambassador to the U.S. Oksana Markarova; Lesia Zaburanna, member of the Ukrainian Parliament; Anton Korynevych, ambassador-at-large at the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs; David Scheffer, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations; former U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine John Herbst, senior director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center; William Taylor, vice president of the USIP Russia and Europe Center; and Lise Grande, president and CEO of USIP https://www.usip.org/events/prosecuting-crime-aggression-ukraine
1 p.m. — Center for a New American Security virtual discussion on a new report, “Precision and Posture: Defense Spending Trends and the FY23 Budget Request,” with Deputy Assistant Defense Secretary for Force Readiness Kimberly Jackson and Katie Wheelbarger, vice president for global program support at Lockheed Martin https://www.cnas.org/events/virtual-event
12:45 p.m. 1750 Independence Ave. S.W. — Friends of the National World War II Memorial and the National Park Service wreath-laying ceremony commemorating the 81st anniversary of the Battle of Pearl Harbor, with Jeff Reinbold, superintendent of the National Mall and Memorial Parks, and Jane Droppa, chairwoman of the Friends of the National World War II Memorial, and keynote address by Adm. Christopher Grady, vice chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff https://www.facebook.com/WWIIMemorialFriends
2:30 p.m. 562 Dirksen — The Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe hearing on “Crowdsourcing Victory: Inside the Civil Society Campaign to Improve the Lethality and Survivability of the Ukrainian Military,” with Dora Chomiak, president of Razom for Ukraine; Taras Chmut, director of the Come Back Alive foundation; Serhiy Prytula, founder and chairman of the Prytula Charity Foundation; and Jonas Ohman, founder and head of Blue/Yellow for Ukraine
THURSDAY | DECEMBER 8
8 a.m. 2401 M St. N.W. — George Washington Project for Media and National Security Defense Writers Group conversation with Marine Corps Commandant Gen. David Berger. Contact: Thom Shanker at [email protected]
8 a.m. 1700 Richmond Hwy., Arlington, Virginia — Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association Northern Virginia Chapter Air Force IT Day 2022 forum, with Air Force Chief Information Officer Lauren Knausenberger; Air Force Maj. Gen. John Olson, acting chief digital and artificial intelligence officer; Thomas Sasala, Navy chief data officer; and Kristyn Jones
, comptroller and assistant Air Force secretary for financial management https://afceanova.swoogo.com/AirForceITDay2022
9 a.m. 801 Wharf St. S.W. — Aspen Strategy Group’s “Aspen Security Forum: D.C. Edition,” with Kathleen Hicks, deputy defense secretary; David Turk, deputy energy secretary; Sen. Todd Young (R-IN); Pekka Haavisto, Finnish foreign affairs minister; Zbigniew Rau, Polish foreign affairs minister; Tobias Lindner, German minister of state; Enrique Mora, deputy secretary-general, European External Action Service; Arati Prabhakar, director, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy; and Zoe Baird, senior counselor to the secretary for technology and economic growth, U.S. Department of Commerce https://web.cvent.com/event
10 a.m. 1789 Massachusetts Ave. N.W. — American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research discussion: on “Unpacking the Pentagon’s 2022 China Military Power Report,” with Deputy Assistant Defense Secretary for China Michael Chase; Assistant Defense Secretary for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Ely Ratner; Zack Cooper, AEI senior fellow; and Mackenzie Eaglen, AEI senior fellow https://www.aei.org/events/unpacking-the-pentagons-2022-china-military-power-report
10 a.m. — U.S. Institute of Peace virtual discussion: “The History and Future of U.S. Sanctions Policy: What the Evolution of U.S. Sanctions Can Tell Us About Promoting Peace in Ukraine and Beyond,” with former Assistant Secretary of State for International Security and Nonproliferation Stephen Rademaker, senior counsel at Covington; former White House national security adviser Stephen Hadley; and Lise Grande, president and CEO of USIP https://www.usip.org/events/history-and-future-us-sanctions-policy
11 a.m. — Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe virtual briefing: “Demining Ukraine: A Prerequisite for Recovery,” with Michael Tirre, program manager for Europe in the State Department’s Political-Military Affairs Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement; Todd Biggs, vice president for munitions response at Tetra Tech; and Tony Connell, Ukraine country director at the Swiss Foundation for Demining DATE: Dec. 8, 2022 https://ushr.webex.com/webappng/sites/ushr/meeting/register
12 p.m. 1000 Massachusetts Ave. N.W. — Cato Institute discussion: “How Much Does China Really Spend on Defense,” with Eric Heginbotham, principal research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Frederico Bartels, consultant at Pantheon Integrated Solutions; and Justin Logan, director of defense and foreign policy studies at the Cato Institute https://www.cato.org/events/how-much-does-china-really-spend-defense
3 p.m. — American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research event: “Standing Up to China Means Standing with Taiwan, with Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-AK) and Dan Blumenthal, senior fellow, AEI https://www.aei.org/events/a-conversation-with-sen-dan-sullivan
3 p.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. N.W. — Center for Strategic and International Studies discussion: “Understanding the Broader Transatlantic Security Implications of Greater Sino-Russian Military Alignment,” with Max Bergmann, director of the CSIS Europe Program; Jude Blanchette, CSIS chairman in China studies; Bonny Lin; director of the CSIS China Power Project; and Brian Hart, fellow at the CSIS China Power Project https://www.csis.org/events/understanding-broader-transatlantic-security-implications
3:30 p.m. — Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe virtual briefing: “Russia’s Infrastructure Terrorists,” with Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Infrastructure Oleksandra Azarkhina https://tinyurl.com/447w272w
5 p.m. 111 Broadway, New York, New York — The Common Good virtual discussion with U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield and Gillian Sorensen, member of the Common Good’s Honorary Advisory Board and former assistant secretary general special adviser for public policy at the U.N. https://www.thecommongoodus.org/upcoming-events/un-ambassador-linda-thomas-greenfield
6 p.m. — Economic Club of Washington, D.C., discussion: with French Ambassador to the U.S. Philippe Etienne https://www.economicclub.org/events/he-philippe-etienne
FRIDAY | DECEMBER 9
9: a.m. — German Marshall Fund of the U.S. virtual discussion: “A Marshall Plan Blueprint for Ukraine,” with Ukrainian Ambassador to the U.S. Oksana Markarova; John Hewko, general secretary of the Rotary International and the Rotary Fund; David Ignatius, columnist at the Washington Post; and Heather Conley, GMFUS president https://www.gmfus.org/event/marshall-plan-blueprint-ukraine
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Because there’s a more important thing going on.”
President Joe Biden’s answer when a reporter asked, “Why go to a border state and not visit the border?”
