Wisconsin Election Officials Debate Changes to Military Absentee Voting

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POLITICS

SecDef tells Congress to get a military budget done already. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Monday urged lawmakers to pass a full-year budget for his department as soon as possible, warning that another short-term spending extension could imperil military readiness and family support efforts.

Wis. election officials weigh changes to military voting. Wisconsin election officials are weighing whether changes to military absentee voting are needed after a top Milwaukee election official was charged with fraud in false requests for military absentee ballots just days before the Nov. 8 election.

NATIONAL SECURITY

US says Russia abruptly postpones arms control talks. The Biden administration said Monday that Russia has abruptly and without explanation postponed the scheduled resumption of arms control talks this week.

US, Russia have used their military hotline once during the Ukraine war. A communications line created between the militaries of the United States and Russia at the start of Moscow's war against Ukraine has been used only once so far,

As F-15s leave Okinawa, an opportunity to change Indo-Pacific air tactics with unmanned options. The US Air Force recently announced that it plans to withdraw its force of F-15C/D fighter aircraft from their home at Kadena Airbase in Okinawa. While the immediate strategic implications may be debatable, the announcement highlights both the need and the opportunity for the Air Force to revamp its force posture in the Western Pacific and elsewhere.

Why the next Chairman of The Joint Chiefs should be from the Air Force. General Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will retire next year. The nation's top military officer by law can only serve a single, non-renewable term of four years, and thus a successor will need to be nominated by Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin.

HOMELAND SECURITY

Marine pilot arrested in Australia treated as ‘high-risk' prisoner. Australia is treating the former U.S. Marine Corps pilot whom Australian police arrested in October as an “extreme high-risk” prisoner as he awaits possible extradition to the United States on undisclosed charges.

CHINA THREAT

China poses increasing threat in military space race, top US general says. Rapid advancements in China's military capabilities pose increasing risks to American supremacy in outer space, the head of the United States military's space wing said on Monday.

Footage shows domestic engine on China's J-15 fighter jet. China appears to be fitting indigenous engines on its Shenyang J-15 Flying Shark, a carrier-borne fighter jet.

SCREW THEM – China says US ship ‘illegally intruded' in waters near Spratlys. China has taken an increasingly assertive approach to its expansive claims in the disputed South China Sea in recent years.

Japan considers preemptive missile strikes to defend against an imminent attack. Japan is looking to acquire a “counterstrike capability” to take out enemy missile sites if the country is attacked, the nation's Ministry of Defense confirmed.

RUSSIA THREAT – UKRAINE WAR

Poland wants to divert pledged German air defenses to Ukraine. Poland's Ministry of National Defense has effectively turned down Germany's offer, for now, to deploy air defense systems along the neighbor's border with Ukraine.

Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events, day 279. Russian forces shelled 30 settlements in Ukraine's southern Kherson region 258 times in the past week, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. Ukraine's military said Russia kept up heavy shelling of key targets Bakhmut and Avdiivka in the eastern Donetsk region and bombarded Kupiansk and Lyman to the north. Kyiv recaptured both recently.

Russia dismisses speculation it is planning to withdraw from Ukraine nuclear plant. The Kremlin on Monday dismissed reports that Russian forces may be planning to retreat from the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in Ukraine.

Fighting rages in eastern Ukraine as Zelensky warns of more Russian missile attacks. Russia is pushing to seize the city of Bakhmut and dismissing claims that it will abandon the Zaporizhzhia nuclear-power plant.

NATO set to renew vow on Ukraine membership, boost non-lethal aid. NATO returns on Tuesday to the scene of one of its most controversial decisions, intent on repeating its vow that Ukraine — now suffering through the 10th month of a war against Russia — will join the world's biggest military alliance one day.

IRAN THREAT

Mapping the protests in Iran. There is an authentic Iranian revolution underway against the Islamic Republic clinging to power in Tehran. Iranians, especially courageous young women, want to bring down the radical Islamist dictatorship that has ruled — and ruined — their lives. This 2022 Iranian Revolution represents the greatest opportunity for the Iranian people to secure the dignity, justice, and fundamental rights they have sought since the Islamic Revolution of 1979. Put simply, the Iranian people are demanding regime change. The United States should be using its power to severely weaken and, if fortunate, collapse the regime.

IDF to hold joint air drills with US, simulating strikes on Iran and proxies. After army chief Kohavi's visit to US, military says fighter jets and refuelers will ‘simulate a number of scenarios in the face of regional threats'

INTERNATIONAL SECURITY – NATO, MIDDLE EAST, AFRICA

Biden administration notifies Congress it has approved $323 million arms sale to Finland. The Biden administration on Monday notified Congress it has approved a possible $323 million arms sale to Finland as the country seeks to join NATO.

Somali forces storm hotel held by extremists, free 60 people. Somali forces on Monday stormed a hotel in the capital, Mogadishu, where Islamic extremists had been holed up for more than 18 hours after killing eight civilians and trapping dozens in the building, officials said.

Pakistan Taliban ends ceasefire with gov't, threatens new attacks. The armed group calls off a truce agreed with the government in June and orders fighters to ‘carry out attacks in the entire country.'

Australia lowers terror threat level for first time since 2014. Australia lowered its terrorism threat level on Monday to “possible” from “probable” for the first time in eight years, citing a reduced risk of attacks from extremists.

As Haiti unravels, US officials push to send in an armed foreign force. Fearing a mass exodus, some Biden officials are pressing for a multinational force, but they don't want to send U.S. troops and haven't been able to persuade other countries to take the lead.

SPACE

China rocket taking 3 to space station to blast off Tuesday. A rocket carrying three astronauts to finish building China's space station will blast off Tuesday amid intensifying competition with the U.S., the government said.

US MILITARY

US Army air defense planners take on rising drone threats. A U.S. Army organization created to guide air- and missile-defense modernization is taking on a new mission to focus on countering drone threats, its new leader said in a recent interview.

American soldiers are currently training high up in the Himalayan Mountains. Troops from the 11th Airborne Division are teaming up with the Indian Army to practice mountainous warfare.

KEWL – Army football reveals WWII-themed uniform for Navy matchup. Hot on the tails of the Navy revealing its space-themed uniform for the annual academy rivalry football matchup, the U.S. Military Academy at West Point decided to look to its past for sartorial inspiration.

The Pentagon can't count: It's time to reinvent the audit. Headlines about the Pentagon failing its financial audit again would never have caught my attention. But having been in the middle of this conversation when I served on a Defense Department advisory board, I understand why the Pentagon can't count. The experience taught me a valuable lesson about innovation and imagination in large organizations, and the difference visionary leadership — or the lack of it — can make.

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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