Meghann Myers is the Pentagon bureau chief at Military Times. She covers operations, policy, personnel, leadership and other issues affecting service members.
Mattis told an audience in Washington on Friday that his decision to become defense secretary was informed by the sense of duty he cultivated for 43 years in uniform.
The delayed programs were chosen largely either because they were upgrades or replacements to existing facilities, a senior defense official told reporters in a Pentagon briefing Wednesday, or because their contract award dates are not scheduled for a year or more.
Navy warships also begin to sortie out of Hampton Roads while some of the sea service's aircraft fly to safety. Other aircraft will be stowed in hardened hangars in Norfolk and Virginia Beach.
Officials clarified Thursday that, while the update creates a new hurdle for some military families to establish citizenship for their children born while they serve overseas, the change is expected to affect only a couple dozen families a year, based on their best estimates.