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Jan 02, 2019    
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Good morning and welcome to the Early Bird Brief. Please email news tips and suggestions to earlybird@militarytimes.com or tweet @Kyle_Rempfer.
Today's Top 5
    1. U.S. Strategic Command deletes New Year's Eve joke about dropping something 'bigger'
(NBC News) U.S. Strategic Command made an unexpected joke in a now-deleted Twitter post about American military might on Monday in its New Year's Eve message.
 
    2. New acting Defense secretary on first day: I look forward to carrying out Trump's vision at Pentagon
(The Hill) Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan started his first day on the job Tuesday with a welcome memo that asserted the Pentagon “remains focused on safeguarding our nation” under the direction of President Trump.
 
    3. Why Russia is swallowing the Black Sea and won’t stop until it has ‘choked out Ukraine'
(Military Times) But absent harsher measures and greater push-back, the former commander of U.S. Army Europe warns that the Russian Federation won’t let up.
 
    4. First KC-46 delivery stalled by Mattis’ departure
(Defense News) Boeing won’t be delivering the first KC-46 tanker to the Air Force in 2018 as planned, due to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis’ surprise ouster from the Pentagon, a source told Defense News on Monday.
 
    5. Timetable of Trump’s pullout from Syria being questioned
(The Associated Press) Amid questions about the pace of his exit from Syria, President Donald Trump complained on Monday that he’s getting “bad press” for his decision to pull American troops out of the country and insisted he was simply making good on his campaign promise against U.S. involvement in “never ending wars.”
 
Overseas Operations
    Mike Pompeo vows US support for Israel despite controversial Syria exit
(Washington Examiner) Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reaffirmed U.S. support for Israel on Tuesday after a visit with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose team was caught off guard by President Trump's plan to withdraw from Syria.
 
    China's electromagnetic railgun is apparently already roaming the high seas
(Task & Purpose) China's futuristic electromagnetic railgun may already be the most powerful cannon to ever roam the high seas — ahead of schedule.
 
    Iraqi jets strike ISIS in Syria after Assad’s authorization
(The Associated Press) The Iraqi military says its fighter jets struck an Islamic State position inside Syria, a day after the Syrian government authorized its neighbor to target the militants at will.
 
    Kim Jong Un says he’s ready for more talks with Trump
(The Associated Press) North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Tuesday he hopes to extend his high-stakes nuclear summit with President Donald Trump into 2019, but also warns Washington not to test North Koreans' patience with sanctions and pressure.
 
    Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White to step down
(The Hill) Pentagon spokeswoman Dana White stepped down from her role in the Trump administration on Monday, capping just over a year and a half in the top communications role.
 
Pentagon
    Here’s what Jim Mattis had to say in his farewell message to troops, DoD personnel
(Military Times) Outgoing Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis issued a farewell letter to all DoD personnel.
 
    New in 2019: Is an even bigger military pay raise on the way?
(Military Times) Troops saw lawmakers approve their biggest pay raise in a decade in 2018. And the next boost could be even bigger than that.
 
    We asked for your defense band names. You delivered.
(Defense News) As with so many things in Washington these days, it started with a tweet.
 
    Last chance: Don’t miss these deadlines today for retirement, health care benefits
(Military Times) The deadline was Dec. 31.
 
    Dana White out as Pentagon's chief spokeswoman
(Military.com) Charles E. "Charlie" Summers, Jr., a former Maine Republican politician and Navy reserve captain, has been named as the new chief spokesman for the Pentagon, replacing Dana White, who held the post under outgoing Defense Secretary Jim Mattis.
 
    Need to know: These new UCMJ laws start Jan. 1
(Military.com) A series of sweeping reforms and updates to the Uniformed Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) kick in on Jan. 1, 2019, including the addition of some crimes, an expansion of victims' rights and standardizing the legal blood alcohol limit for drivers on some military bases.
 
    Why the Pentagon Bought Romania a ‘Cheap and Cheerful’ Hatchback
(Bloomberg) Nobody at the Pentagon can quite figure out why U.S. taxpayers bought a Dacia Sandero Stepway 2 for the Romanian defense ministry, but it’s apparently one of those things allies do to smooth relations.
 
    Amidst turmoil, Pentagon persists on acquisition reform: Ellen Lord
(Breaking Defense) One constant in the abrupt transition from outgoing Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to his deputy, soon to be acting secretary, Patrick Shanahan? The grueling, technical, but crucial business of acquisition reform.
 
    Mattis departs as defense secretary as the Pentagon faces period of uncertainty
(Washington Post) The outgoing Pentagon chief resigned Dec. 20 after a series of disagreements with President Trump.
 
    America, Meet Your (Acting) Secretary of Defense
(The Atlantic ) With no military experience and just a year and a half in government, the former Boeing executive Patrick Shanahan has yet to develop a foreign-policy vision of his own.
 
    Can Silicon Valley Learn to Stop Worrying and Love the Pentagon?
(Foreign Policy) Palmer Luckey, the 26-year-old founder of Oculus VR, is leading the charge to get tech companies and the Defense Department on the same page.
 
Army
    New in 2019: The Army’s got a big end strength gap to fill this year
(Army Times) Senior Army leadership has known for years that recruiting new soldiers has only been getting tougher, but even so, they set an ambitious goal of 80,000 new soldiers for fiscal year 2018.
 
    New in 2019: The Army’s due for a new chief of staff and sergeant major. Who will they be?
(Army Times) The Army’s top general and top senior enlisted leader are both hitting the four-year mark in their jobs in 2019. That means the Army will be welcoming a new chief of staff and a new sergeant major of the Army.
 
Navy
    The 19 things you need to watch in 2019
(Navy Times) More money and more personnel but also new challenges from rising rivals in the Western Pacific, Europe and the Persian Gulf.
 
    Florida Keys fisherman catches cocaine
(Navy Times) Florida Keys fisherman reeled in an unusual catch: 40 to 60 pounds (18 to 25 kilograms) of white powder that authorities suspect is cocaine.
 
    Coast Guard lighthouse to shine again in 2019
(Navy Times) The original light in the Sullivan's Island Lighthouse went dark in November.
 
    The end of allcaps and !!!! in performance reviews gains support from sailors
(Stars & Stripes) The Navy’s new annual performance evaluation will be missing several exclamation points, lots of capital letters and a rating block system that some sailors said allows lesser performers to advance because they aren’t being compared broadly enough with their peers.
 
    Rep. Courtney: Looming Costs Will Force Decision on How to Pay for SSBNs
(USNI News) How to pay for the upcoming Columbia-class ballistic-missile submarine “will have a life of its own” this spring and may force the Navy and Pentagon to embrace a dedicated funding account they have so far only partially leveraged, a key congressman on the House Armed Services Committee predicted.
 
Air Force
    Two people killed in fiery car crash on McConnell Air Force Base
(Air Force Times) Two people died in a fiery crash late Sunday on McConnell Air Force Base in Wichita, Kansas.
 
Marine Corps
    NEW IN 2019: There will be a new Marine commandant this year
(Marine Corps Times) The top Marine is headed into his fourth and final year as commandant of the Marine Corps.
 
    NEW IN 2019: New Sea Dragon experiments, with information focus
(Marine Corps Times) It's a focus on the vital information that can determine any engagement's outcome before bullets even fly.
 
    Marine dies from gunshot wound while on duty in DC
(Washington Examiner) A U.S. Marine stationed in Washington, D.C., died on duty Tuesday from a gunshot wound.
 
National Guard
    About 50 Colorado Army National Guard members deploying to Afghanistan
(Denver Post) Soldiers based out of Buckley Air Force Base to spend next year in support of Operation Freedom’s Sentinel.
 
Coast Guard
    Coast Guard Academy: Government shutdown could hurt cadets
(The Associated Press) The U.S. Coast Guard Academy’s ability to serve cadets returning from winter break will be affected by the forced furlough of administrative staff and other nonessential civilians as part of the partial government shutdown, the school said Monday.
 
    Coast Guard lighthouse to shine again in 2019
(The Associated Press) A South Carolina lighthouse will likely remain dark for another month or so as workers overhaul its lighting system.
 
Defense Industry
    Israel Aerospace considering investment in drone maker Aeronautics
(Reuters) State-owned defense contractor Israel Aerospace Industries said on Tuesday it was in talks to invest in local drone maker Aeronautics .
 
    Army awards $200M for satellite support contract
(C4ISRNET) The Army has awarded Harris Corp. a follow-on contract worth nearly $218 million to support the service’s wideband satellite operations centers and management sites.
 
    Boeing receives $400M contract to keep B-1, B-52 bombers flying
(UPI) The contract was for engineering services on B-1 and B-52 strategic bombers.
 
Veterans
    These are the GI Bill transfer changes you’ll need to know about in 2019
(Military Times) Earlier this year, the Pentagon changed the rules for troops who want to transfer their Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to their dependents.
 
    Massachusetts judge sides with ‘bad paper’ veterans denied bonuses
(Stars & Stripes) A Massachusetts judge sided with three Afghanistan war veterans who filed a lawsuit against the state after being denied “Welcome Home” bonuses because of their other-than-honorable military discharges.
 
Congress & Politics
    Warren, a critic of Pentagon bloat and nukes, heads to 2020 presidential run
(Defense News) U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Monday took the first major step toward launching a widely anticipated campaign for the presidency.
 
    What will 2019 bring in federal workforce, IT, legislation and more?
(Federal Times) With 2018 coming to a close, all eyes are looking toward what the New Year may hold.
 
    Incoming chairman’s top goal for 2019: Building up VA, not outside care programs
(Military Times) Rep. Mark Takano doesn’t see President Donald Trump as an enemy to veterans. But he isn’t sure if the administration is a reliable friend to them, either.
 
    Trump attacks McChrystal after retired general called Trump immoral
(CNN) n one of his first tweets of the new year, President Donald Trump attacked retired four-star Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal after he criticized the President on Sunday.
 
Cyber, Space & Surveillance
    C4ISRNET’s 5 most-read stories of the year
(C4ISRNET) With a new national defense strategy that focuses a move away from counterterrorism and an emphasis on China and Russia, it’s not surprising that Russia was the subject of two of our most-read stories this year. After all, a different type of conflict requires a rethinking of the technology necessary to win those battles.
 
    Four big questions for cybersecurity in 2019
(Fifth Domain) How will cybersecurity experts remember 2018?
 
    Air Force turns to nontraditional contracting for space technology projects
(Space News) Capt. Benjamin Leaf, program manager of the Space Enterprise Consortium: “We are changing space acquisitions in multiple ways."
 
International Affairs
    South Korean army to launch AI research center
(UPI) South Korea's Army said Monday that it will launch a new research institute on artificial intelligence this week in a bid to capitalize on cutting-edge technologies for future combat operations.
 
    Kim says ready to meet Trump 'anytime,' warns of 'new path'
(Reuters) North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said on Tuesday he is ready to meet U.S. President Donald Trump again anytime to achieve their common goal of denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula, but warned he may have to take an alternative path if U.S. sanctions and pressure against the country continued.
 
    Israeli official: Netanyahu to ask Pompeo to temper Syria withdrawal
(The Hill) A senior Israeli official on Monday said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu intends to ask U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to slow the withdrawal of U.S. forces in Syria.
 
Commentary & Analysis
    Two cyber risks every agency should worry about in 2019
(Fifth Domain) As 2018 ends, it’s crucial to step back and reflect on some cybersecurity realities.
 
    Mitt Romney: The president shapes the public character of the nation. Trump’s character falls short.
(Washington Post) The people of this country will respond if called to a higher action.
 
    Time to Get Out of Afghanistan
(New York Times) The United States is spending beyond its means on a mission that might only be helping its strategic rivals.
 
    The Iraq Exit Strategy Will Not Work in Afghanistan
(The National Interest) They are two different battlefields with very different variables
 
    Can Japan Lead Asia?
(The National Interest) There is a feasible way for Tokyo to resume rhetorical leadership in formulating the Indo-Pacific strategy.
 
    US-China Relations at 40
(The Diplomat) The “normalization of relations” meets the “new normal.”
 
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