Saturday, February 9, 2013

Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- February 9, 2013

Protesters briefly disrupted the confirmation hearing for John O. Brennan, President Obama’s nominee to be C.I.A. director, on Capitol Hill on Thursday. Stephen Crowley/The New York Times

Five Things We Learned From John Brennan's Confirmation Hearing -- CNN

John Brennan came well-prepared Thursday and held his own during questioning at his Senate confirmation hearing to become the 21st director of the Central Intelligence Agency. It was in stark contrast to what was considered by many as an ill-prepared, lethargic performance by defense secretary nominee Chuck Hagel at his confirmation hearing last week.

Democrats on the Senate Intelligence Committee mostly grilled Brennan about his knowledge of the CIA's controversial interrogation and detention program and the lethal targeting of suspected terrorists. Republicans tended to focus on leaks of secret information about counterterrorism activities.

While on one hand Brennan was forceful with his answers, on the other he seemed very careful with his choice of words.

Here are five things we learned from the hearing:

Read more ....

MILITARY AND INTELLIGENCE NEWS BRIEFS

Looming Budget Cuts Threaten Pentagon -- Voice of America

Military services outline their spending cut plans -- Stars and Stripes/USA Today

Army Offers More Budget Crunch Guidance -- Defense News

Army warns Congress of decreased readiness amid budget shortfall -- Washington Times

A Reckoning for The Army -- Douglas A. Macgregor, Time

Army offers more budget crunch guidance -- Army Times

Air Force calls sequester cuts 'dangerous' -- Stars and Stripes

The Upside of Pentagon Budget Cuts
-- Mark Thompson, Time

Despite warnings on U.S. defense cuts, little action to stop them -- Aviation Week

How Big Would DoD Budget be Under Sequestration? Pretty Big, It Turns Out. -- Defense News

Israel has its eye on V-22 Osprey -- YNet News

Turkish officer resignations fuel fears over army morale -- Reuters

Canadian navy officer who sold U.S. secrets to Russia convicted of espionage -- Washington Times

Former RAF serviceman quizzed over child abuse claims -- BBC

Military Order of Malta turns 900 -- North Adams Transcript/AP

Update: Yemen's Defense Ministry Details Dangerous Cargo Aboard Seized Iranian Ship -- Maritime Executive

What Military Equipment Will Uzbekistan Get From The UK? -- Eurasianet.org

US military questions UN report on child casualties in Afghanistan -- Stars and Stripes

Top U.S. officer says sufficient troops to remain in Afghanistan -- Reuters

US military may skip Paris air show due to budget cuts -- Global Post/AFP

U.S. cruise-missile submarines on the way out -- Stars and Stripes

Flaws reportedly found in US missile shield -- Stars and Stripes/AP

Boeing Risks $700 Million Tanker Overrun, Air Force Says
-- Bloomberg

Army Pack Radios to get SATCOM Upgrade
-- DoD Buzz

Women say they don't want military standards changed -- USA Today

Military pay in play in game of political poker -- Halimah Abdullah, CNN

Atlantic Council releases list of foreign donors for Hagel
-- The Hill

Will Hagel withdraw? I’d say 50-50
-- Thomas E. Ricks, Best Defense

Obama salutes Panetta as he prepares to retire -- AP

Two more Marines charged in urination incident
-- Stars and Stripes

Chad Littlefield, 1977-2013: The Other Shooting-Range Victim -- Battleland/Time

A global cyber-crisis in waiting -- Richard Clarke, Washington Post

Five myths about Obama’s drone war -- Mark R. Jacobson, Washington Post

First U.S. casualty of 2013 buried in Arlington Cemetery -- Washington Post

No comments: