FOR YOUR EYES ONLY – American Liberty News (ALN) – in collaboration with respected national security expert Paul Crespo and the Center for American Defense Studies (CADS) – provides our readers the PDB:
Not the President's Daily Brief, but almost as good – PAUL'S DAILY BRIEFING.
Get Your Best Daily Defense and Foreign Affairs Intelligence Here in One Brief. Read the summaries or dive deeper via the linked articles.
PENTAGON WOKE WATCH
MOMMY AND ME TIME – GREAT FOR THEM – MORE STRESS ON MILITARY READINESS AND ENTIRE SYSTEM – 12-week military parental leave benefit will be in place by next month. All military parents will be eligible for 12 weeks of family leave following the birth or adoption of a child under a new policy set to take effect no later than Jan. 1.
POLITICS
Army general faulted by inspector general for White House misconduct. An Army brigadier general may face punishment for his workplace conduct while serving as the top White House military official, according to a recently released Defense Department inspector general report.
Congress clashes on loans vs grants for Taiwan military aid. Several top appropriators are pushing to offer loans to Taiwan to finance as much as $10 billion in military aid authorized in the annual defense bill as a way to alleviate budget pressure on the State Department, which oversees the Foreign Military Financing program.
DEFENSE BUDGET
Defense policy bill with COVID vaccine repeal heads to Biden's desk. Plans for a 4.6% pay raise for troops and a repeal of the military's COVID-19 vaccine mandate are headed to the White House to become law after the Senate on Thursday advanced the annual defense authorization bill by a comfortable bipartisan margin of 83 to 11.
Congress authorizes 8% defense budget increase. The Senate voted 83-11 on Friday to authorize an 8% defense budget increase over fiscal 2022 levels. The FY 2023 National Defense Authorization Act adds $45 billion to what the White House requested in its defense budget proposal.
NATIONAL SECURITY
AND? – Once-classified files on JFK's assassination released by Biden. What we know. President Joe Biden on Thursday released a cache of once-classified documents expected to shed light on the assassination of President John F. Kennedy nearly 60 years ago.
YES – Long-range missiles for Okinawa should come with local buy-in, experts say. A reported plan by Japan to base long-range missiles in Okinawa prefecture without first gaining local acceptance could erode confidence in the U.S.-Japan alliance, an American professor in Tokyo said recently.
CHINA THREAT
US slaps restrictions on Chinese chipmaker and other companies over national security worries. The Biden administration said it added mostly Chinese organizations to a so-called Entity List intended to restrict efforts to use advanced technologies to modernize China's military.
Japan to build a more powerful military, citing China as its no. 1 menace. Tokyo plans to spend 2% of GDP on defense and says its missiles will be able to hit other countries.
US military support for Philippines in the South China Sea is no sure thing. US officials have pledged military support in case of a Chinese attack on the Philippines, but the treaty leaves some room for interpretation.
A Visit Inside China's Desert Rocket Base. In November, a New York Times reporter visited China's rocket base deep in the frozen Gobi Desert to witness the launch of three astronauts during the Shenzhou 15 mission to China's new space station. Here is what he saw.
RUSSIA THREAT – UKRAINE WAR
US to begin training hundreds of Ukrainian troops every month. Starting in January, 500 Ukrainian troops a month will travel to Germany to train with the U.S. Army, the Pentagon announced.
Russia warns of ‘consequences' if US missiles go to Ukraine. U.S. officials said Tuesday that Washington was poised to approve sending a Patriot missile battery to Ukraine.
Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 296. Russia pounded Ukraine with missiles in the eastern region of Kharkiv, the Black Sea region of Odesa and in Vinnytsia in west-central Ukraine, hitting critical infrastructure across the country and leaving some areas without power as people took cover in shelters, Ukrainian officials said.
Ukraine war: Deadly attack leaves retaken Kherson with no power. Two people have been killed, say Ukrainian officials, in a second day of Russian attacks on central Kherson, recaptured by Ukraine last month.
Why Russia cannot produce enough munitions to keep pace with combat in Ukraine. Russia was firing up to 20,000 rounds per day in Ukraine as of November.
Russia is destroying Ukraine's economy, raising costs for US and allies. Relentless Russian bombing of infrastructure has worsened the economic outlook for Ukraine, which was already on the brink of disaster and is looking to the West for help.
Ukrainian drones are making life hell for Russian troops in Crimea. “Our main threat to Crimea is drones, everything else is under full control.”
NORTH KOREA THREAT
North Korea claims successful rocket test that could bolster its ICBM force. North Korea on Friday said it has successfully tested a solid-fueled rocket motor, a development that could lead to Kim Jong Un's regime being able to more quickly and reliably fire an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in the future.
IRAN THREAT
Iran asking Russia to sell military ships, help build new designs: Israeli sources. According to multiple Israeli defense sources, officials from Iran have traveled to Russia to discuss the potential for naval cooperation – including building new ships.
INTERNATIONAL SECURITY – NATO, MIDDLE EAST, ASIA, AFRICA
Russian bombers, fighter jets skirt Japanese skies to send a message, expert says. Russian bombers made a recent show of force near Japan to indicate the cost of being an “unfriendly country,” according to a Tokyo-based security expert.
India tests long-range missile for nuclear deterrence. India on Thursday successfully test-fired a long-range “Agni-5” intercontinental nuclear-capable ballistic missile, a government minister said, that is expected to strengthen its deterrence against long-time rival China.
Turkey's Baykar launches new jet-powered drone, aiming for air-to-air combat. Turkish defence firm Baykar said its first jet-powered unmanned aerial combat vehicle (UCAV) completed its maiden flight on Wednesday, as the company continues to gain popularity globally, most recently by helping Ukraine's army fight Russian forces.
BIDEN'S AFGHAN DISASTER
Will Congress really send 80,000 Afghans back to the Taliban? Before the United States made its chaotic exit from Afghanistan in August 2021, Congress had promised special immigrant visas to Afghans who worked with our military or civilians. Once our allies were without the protection of American forces, they would surely face Taliban revenge.
SPACE
Rocket Lab aims for rapid launch capability at new Virginia complex, with a Friday first. “Those of us who follow the space industry closely understand the autonomous flight termination is a key component of the range of the future. In fact, for DoD missions, autonomous flight termination is a mandate by 2025,” said NASA's David Pierce.
US MILITARY
Inside the Army's newest spy plane. Already watching over Ukraine, Leidos' ARTEMIS is part of the service's growing fleet of contractor-owned intelligence aircraft.
The Army is testing out slightly less miserable CBRN gear. The future is a slightly less shitty time in MOPP gear.
BIO-WARFARE – Why Army scientists were called in to investigate the death of a Red Panda at the National Zoo. Detecting and identifying pathogens is a key part of defending against biological warfare.
Harrowing video captures small boat mishap near USNS Comfort. Harrowing video has emerged of the moment a small boat tipped over as it was being lifted onto the Navy hospital ship Comfort, sending several passengers into the choppy seas below.
New B-21 test aircraft heraldry, barely visible at rollout, revealed. The first B-21 bomber, which rolled out of Northrop Grumman's facilities at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale Calif., on Dec. 2, bears three organizational emblems, barely visible on the aircraft's surface behind its unusual cockpit windows—Air Force Materiel Command, Global Strike Command, and the 412th Test Wing.
WTH?! – IT'S BRAND NEW! – USS Tripoli facing ongoing drinking water issues. The amphibious assault ship Tripoli is having problems with its onboard drinking water system, but officials have declined to fully explain the nature of the problem or why a ship commissioned in 2020 is grappling with such issues.
END of PDB
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.
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Defund mandate OK
Be afraid. Be very afraid. The Boogeyman is coming for you.
as if the military/industrial complex didn’t already have a crazy amount of money
What I want to know is when the people pushing this phony mandate from FAuci and congress and on down are going to be in jail for it.
I’m sure that extra money will go to sensitivity training and woke how to sessions.