the cuts are already beginning and it looks a bit rough Des Moines Register March 7, 2012 Air Force Asks Congress To Cut 459 Jobs From Iowa Air Guard By William Petroski The U.S. Air Force on Tuesday asked Congress to eliminate 459 positions within the 132nd Wing of the Iowa Air National Guard as …
Possible Fuel Leak Curtails F-35 Flight At U.S. Base
Reuters.com March 6, 2012 WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- The long-awaited first flight of a new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter at Eglin Air Force Base in Florida was cut short on Tuesday by a possible fuel leak, the Air Force said. The pilot flying the F-35A fighter built by Lockheed Martin Corp cut short the planned 90-minute …
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Lawmakers Challenge Air Force Budget, Drone Cuts
Reuters.com March 6, 2012 By Andrea Shalal-Esa, Reuters WASHINGTON -- Lawmakers on Tuesday called top Air Force officials to task over recent acquisition missteps and raised concerns about their budget plans for fiscal 2013, which calls for cancellation of Northrop Grumann Corp's unmanned Global Hawk plane. Air Force Secretary Michael Donley and Chief of Staff …
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McCain Urges U.S.-Led Strike In Syria
Miami Herald March 6, 2012 Pg. 3 'Shame on us,' said GOP Sen. John McCain, if the U.S. fails to help Syrians fight a bloody crackdown by regime forces. He urged airstrikes. By Michael A. Memoli, Tribune Washington Bureau WASHINGTON — Republican Sen. John McCain said the United States should lead a military air assault …
Defense Is Under The Gun By Robert J. Samuelson
Washington Post March 5, 2012 Pg. 17 It turns out that “budget sequestration,” portrayed as an evenhanded way to spur bipartisan negotiations over budget deficits, is actually a dagger aimed at defense spending. The president and other top administration officials have said the automatic spending cuts required by sequestration are “bad policy.” But they still …
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Al Qaeda In Iraq Mounts Comeback
Washington Times March 5, 2012 Pg. 1 Claims a string of fatal bombings By Rowan Scarborough, The Washington Times Al Qaeda in Iraq, the Osama bin Laden-inspired terrorist group that sank the country into sectarian violence five years ago, is trying to make a comeback in post-U.S.-occupied Iraq, analysts and intelligence officials say. Washington is …
A Cold-War Chill? US-Russia Relations Falter Over Libya And Syria
Christian Science Monitor (csmonitor.com) March 3, 2012 Stormy days lie ahead for US-Russia relations, many say. Progress on issues like missile defense and NATO-Russia relations could suffer serious setbacks if the Syria and Iran crises deteriorate further. By Howard LaFranchi, Staff writer WASHINGTON--Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton doffed her diplomatic gloves after Russia vetoed …
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China Boosts Defense Spending By 11.2 Percent
Reuters.com March 4, 2012 By Chris Buckley, Reuters BEIJING--China will boost military spending by 11.2 percent this year, the government said on Sunday, unveiling Beijing's first defense budget since President Barack Obama launched a "pivot" to reinforce U.S. influence across the Asia-Pacific. The increase was announced by Li Zhaoxing, the spokesman for China's parliament, and …
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China Lays Out Stance On Syria, Rejects ‘Interference’
NYTimes.com March 4, 2012 BEIJING (Reuters) - China warned other powers on Sunday not to use humanitarian aid for Syria to "interfere" in the strife-torn Middle Eastern country, while urging unity in the U.N. Security Council after a split with Western powers over the crisis. The Chinese Foreign Ministry laid out its stance on Syria …
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U.S. Backers Of Israel Pressure Obama Over Policy On Iran
New York Times March 4, 2012 Pg. 1 Mark Landler WASHINGTON — On the eve of a crucial visit to the White House by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel, that country's most powerful American advocates are mounting an extraordinary public campaign to pressure President Obama into hardening American policy toward Iran over its nuclear …
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