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It cost millions to recruit, train new troops being booted for vaccine refusal
Hundreds of trainees shipped to basic training unvaccinated and continue to refuse, flagging them for discharge.
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Pentagon & Congress
Defense industry frets as funding talks crawl
Despite repeated warnings from lawmakers and uniformed Pentagon leaders that a full-year continuing resolution will hurt national security, some in the defense industry are still worried that budgetary route is a possibility.
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Pay raises for thousands of military employees under new federal worker minimum wage
About 56,000 civilian military employees and almost 10,000 VA workers will benefit from the change.
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No active duty COVID deaths since vaccination deadlines, but reserve deaths continue
The majority of the military's COVID-19 deaths have been among members of the Reserve and National Guard.
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Lawmakers urge SECDEF to drop TRICARE copays for birth control
The extra costs are waived by most private insurers but not for members of the military.
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Troops would automatically be enrolled in VA health care under House plan
The move could affect about 60,000 separating service members annually.
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The National Guard’s sexual assault investigation office has limited power to get justice
A special office will review sexual assault charges, but there's no accountability for state leadership if they don't call them.
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Everyone wants to help military toxic exposure victims. Not all want to pay.
Lawmakers support the idea but face problems paying for the nearly $300 billion plan.
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New bill aims to cut the price of spare parts for DoD
Legislation proposed Wednesday would force government vendors to publicly disclose data about their costs, a move to help the government negotiate better deals for spare parts.
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US boosts military aid to Ukraine as Russia tensions soar
“We’re now at a stage where Russia could at any point launch an attack in Ukraine,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Tuesday.
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VA approved thousands of ineligible doctors — now lawmakers want changes
More than 600 deceased providers were included on VA's Community Care list.
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Before US pullout, watchdog warned of Afghan air force collapse
The SIGAR report underscores that American authorities had been alerted that Afghanistan’s air force did not have the capabilities to survive after a U.S. withdrawal.
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Milley, Berger, test positive for COVID-19
Two members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff have contracted COVID-19.
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Military’s anti-extremism policy might not apply to about a million reservists
The National Guard says that its troops aren't subject to the policy when they're not on federal status.
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Yellow ribbons honoring troops removed from town green amid speech dispute
Litchfield officials are concerned that allowing the ribbons opens the door to any displays of free speech, no matter how hateful or offensive.
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New $16 billion VA medical records system delayed again. This time by COVID
Plans to deploy the software in Ohio in March are being pushed back almost two months.
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Melvin Bowling, retired two-star and original ‘Early Bird’ contributor, dies at 88
MG Bowling accrued more than 6,500 flight hours and was one of a few Air Force pilots to fly missions off of Navy aircraft carriers.
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Reed aims for fresh push to confirm Biden’s Pentagon nominees
Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Jack Reed, D-R.I., said this week he will renew his efforts to persuade the U.S. Senate to confirm President Joe Biden’s nominees for the Pentagon.
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Amid Russia crisis, Pentagon nominee criticizes Obama response to Crimea
A top Pentagon pick for President Biden has criticized the Obama administration’s response to Russia’s 2014 annexation of Crimea as “too slow and too incremental.”
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Two more Army reservists die of COVID
Roughly half of the military's 88 COVID-19 deaths have been among Army reservists.
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Military deployments alone won’t be enough to fight COVID surge, Biden says
About 1,000 military medical specialists will deploy to hard-hit hosptials in coming weeks to ease pressure on health care staff.
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Cancelled bonuses, PCS moves among fallout from delayed budget, service chiefs warn
Kicking the budget can down the road could have serious consequences on personnel, leaders said.
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Navy cites ‘operator error’ in fuel spill linked to families’ tainted water
The crisis has affected more than 9,000 Navy, Army and Air Force households at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and the Army’s Aliamanu Military Reservation and Red Hill communities, which are on the Navy water system.
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Inspector general investigating whether services are screening recruits for extremism
The Pentagon inspector general's audit follows new Pentagon recruiting guidelines on extremism.
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US announces $308 million in aid for Afghans as crisis grows after withdrawal
Afghanistan's long-troubled economy has been in a tailspin since the U.S. withdrawal.
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He won $346m in contracts meant for vets and minorities. He was neither
Man gets prison time for defrauding government of more than $340 million in contracts meant for vets and minorities.
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