Author: Ellen Mitchell

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Monday declared President Trump’s proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget a “message to the world” in its reestablishment of the U.S.’s military might. Speaking to employees at Lockheed Martin’s facility in Fort Worth, Texas, Hegseth declared that the Trump administration is “rebuilding our military,” and plans to increase the U.S. defense…

Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & NatSec newsletter {beacon} Defense &National Security Defense &National Security   The Big Story Trump gives up on National Guard deployments in Chicago, LA, Portland President Trump said Wednesday that his administration will end its deployment of the National Guard in Chicago; Los Angeles; and Portland, Ore., vowing to return…

China on Monday accused the U.S. of violating international law in seizing oil tankers off the coast of Venezuela, appearing to take the side of Caracas as Washington looks to take a third oil tanker this month. “The U.S. practice of arbitrarily seizing other countries’ vessels grossly violates international law,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin…

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Saturday took the podium at the annual Reagan National Defense Forum to attack post-Cold War U.S. foreign policy, declaring a new military focus on the Western Hemisphere while lambasting the decisions of former administrations. Over roughly 40 minutes, Hegseth touched on a myriad of topics, including repeated demands that allies…

Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & NatSec newsletter {beacon} Defense &National Security Defense &National Security   The Big Story Dem leaders up in arms at Trump for touting death penalty for lawmakers House Democratic leaders hammered President Trump on Thursday after the president suggested a group of Democratic lawmakers should be executed for “seditious behavior”…

Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & NatSec newsletter {beacon} View Online Defense &National Security Defense &National Security   The Big Story Trump’s surprise 28-point Ukraine peace plan The Trump administration is renewing a push to end Russia’s war in Ukraine, with a reported 28-point peace plan that caught Kyiv’s supporters in Congress off guard. ©…

A Russian cruise missile whose secret development led President Trump to abandon a nuclear arms control pact with Moscow in his first term has been used to attack Ukraine in recent months, according to Kyiv’s foreign minister. Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiha is the first to confirm that Russia has used the ground-launched 9M729 missile in combat, firing the missile at Ukraine 23 times since August and twice in 2022, Reuters reported. The 9M729, which can carry a nuclear or conventional warhead and is believed to have a range of more than 1,500 miles, prompted Trump to pull…

96 <!– *{box-sizing:border-box}body{margin:0;padding:0}a[x-apple-data-detectors]{color:inherit!important;text-decoration:inherit!important}#MessageViewBody a{color:inherit;text-decoration:none}p{line-height:inherit}.desktop_hide,.desktop_hide table{mso-hide:all;display:none;max-height:0;overflow:hidden}.image_block img+div{display:none}sub,sup{font-size:75%;line-height:0}#converted-body .list_block ol,#converted-body .list_block ul,.body [class~=x_list_block] ol,.body [class~=x_list_block] ul,u+.body .list_block ol,u+.body .list_block ul{padding-left:20px} @media (max-width:620px){.desktop_hide table.icons-outer{display:inline-table!important}.image_block div.fullWidth{max-width:100%!important}.mobile_hide{display:none}.row-content{width:100%!important}.stack .column{width:100%;display:block}.mobile_hide{min-height:0;max-height:0;max-width:0;overflow:hidden;font-size:0}.desktop_hide,.desktop_hide table{display:table!important;max-height:none!important}.reverse{display:table;width:100%}.reverse .column.first{display:table-footer-group!important}.reverse .column.last{display:table-header-group!important}.row-10 td.column.first .border,.row-8 td.column.first .border{padding:5px 5px 15px 25px}.row-10 td.column.last .border,.row-12 td.column.last .border,.row-8 td.column.last .border{padding:5px 20px 25px 5px}.row-12 td.column.first .border{padding:5px 5px 15px 25px;border-bottom:15px solid transparent}} Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & NatSec newsletter{beacon} Defense &National Security Defense &National Security <!–  The Big Story Pentagon moves to fire civilian workers with ‘speed and conviction’ The Pentagon has pulled key protections for its civilian personnel, directing managers to move with “speed and conviction” to fire underperforming workers, according to…

96 *{box-sizing:border-box}body{margin:0;padding:0}a[x-apple-data-detectors]{color:inherit!important;text-decoration:inherit!important}#MessageViewBody a{color:inherit;text-decoration:none}p{line-height:inherit}.desktop_hide,.desktop_hide table{mso-hide:all;display:none;max-height:0;overflow:hidden}.image_block img+div{display:none}sub,sup{font-size:75%;line-height:0}#converted-body .list_block ol,#converted-body .list_block ul,.body [class~=x_list_block] ol,.body [class~=x_list_block] ul,u+.body .list_block ol,u+.body .list_block ul{padding-left:20px} @media (max-width:620px){.desktop_hide table.icons-outer{display:inline-table!important}.image_block div.fullWidth{max-width:100%!important}.mobile_hide{display:none}.row-content{width:100%!important}.stack .column{width:100%;display:block}.mobile_hide{min-height:0;max-height:0;max-width:0;overflow:hidden;font-size:0}.desktop_hide,.desktop_hide table{display:table!important;max-height:none!important}.reverse{display:table;width:100%}.reverse .column.first{display:table-footer-group!important}.reverse .column.last{display:table-header-group!important}.row-10 td.column.first .border,.row-12 td.column.first .border,.row-8 td.column.first .border{padding:5px 5px 15px 25px}.row-10 td.column.last .border,.row-12 td.column.last .border,.row-14 td.column.last .border,.row-8 td.column.last .border{padding:5px 20px 25px 5px}.row-14 td.column.first .border{padding:5px 5px 15px 25px;border-bottom:15px solid transparent}} sup, sub { font-size: 100% !important; } sup { mso-text-raise:10% } sub { mso-text-raise:-10% } Welcome to The Hill’s Defense & NatSec newsletter {beacon} Defense &National Security Defense &National Security <!–   The Big Story Trump wants to pay the troops without Congress. Can he make it happen?…

The Senate late Thursday approved its massive annual defense policy bill as the U.S. government remains shut down. The GOP-led chamber approved the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) 70-20, which funds the U.S. military at $924.7 billion in fiscal year 2026. The vote came after lawmakers reached a deal earlier in the day to unlock the stalled legislation. The bill’s passage allows the House and Senate armed services committees to begin the sometimes arduous conference process, during which lawmakers hammer out a compromise between each chambers’ version of the legislation. The House version of the NDAA, passed last month, has…