Month: September 2020

In its continued efforts to provide resources to service members and their families, the Department of Defense issued an info sheet highlighting a few of the many resources available to help those who may be coping with an experience of sexual assault.

As service members continue to experience daily challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the DOD wants everyone to know that assistance for sexual assault remains available for all service members and their dependents.

More information can be found here.

There is broad, bipartisan support for the modernization of the nuclear triad, which includes bombers, intercontinental ballistic missiles, submarines and the systems that control them, a Defense Department expert said.

Robert Soofer, the deputy assistant secretary of defense for nuclear and missile defense policy, also said support is more divided for the creation of W76-2, which is a class of low-yield, tactical nuclear warhead that is different from those in the nuclear triad. An example would be a submarine-launched ballistic missile nuclear warhead.

To understand the divide over support for W76-2, one must have an understanding of the two schools of thought on the best approach to nuclear deterrence, Soofer told the Air Force Association Mitchell Institute’s Nuclear Deterrence Forum today.

Each school of thought has its advocates, including members of Congress, interest groups and think tanks, he noted.

The first school of thought is known as simple nuclear deterrence, sometimes referred to as minimum deterrence. The thought is that deterrence is best achieved with a limited number of nuclear weapons that, for example, could destroy a certain number of an adversary’s cities, Soofer said. The viability of the deterrence is created by an adversary’s fear of uncontrolled nuclear escalation.

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Eligible Warfighters can now purchase up to $1,000 in qualifying merchandise on their MILITARY STAR® Military Clothing Plan interest free, doubling the plan’s original credit limit of $500.

Effective Sept. 1, the increase is the first to the Military Clothing Plan’s credit limit since 1979. The plan’s payment duration has been extended from eight to 12 months as well.

The Military Clothing Plan is a zero-interest line of credit for uniform purchases. All active-duty Soldiers, Airmen and Marines, as well as Guard and Reserve members, are eligible.

“These changes further enhance the value the MILITARY STAR card provides America’s Warfighters,” said Exchange Credit Program Senior Vice President Tommy Ward. “Service members now have more flexibility than ever to maintain their uniforms, stay mission ready and affordably build credit.”

ECP began exploring the possibility of raising the plan’s credit limit in March 2019, prompted by requests and inquiries from service members.

Before moving forward, the team considered the possible impact of a credit limit increase on service members’ monthly payments. To avoid significant increases in monthly payments, it was decided that the limit increase would be accompanied by an extension of the plan’s payback period to 12 months.

“Warfighters asked, and we listened,” said Kathy Bronkalla, Vice President of Credit Strategy. “It took 18 months of careful planning and coordination, but we are honored to say we have strengthened this benefit for our service members for the first time in more than 40 years.”

Purchases that qualify for the Military Clothing Plan include:

• Defense Logistics and Troop Support (DLAT)-procured issue military clothing items and footwear.
• DLAT organizational clothing and individual equipment items.
• The Army Green Service Uniform, which is procured directly by the Exchange.
• Exchange commercial uniform clothing, undergarments, insignia and footwear to be worn with the uniform.

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President Trump overrode his defense secretary and vowed to continue funding Stars and Stripes, the military’s editorially independent newspaper that covers issues relevant to members of the armed forces, after news the administration ordered the organization to shutter leaked to the public.

Trump tweeted Friday afternoon that the US “will NOT be cutting funding” to the outlet. The President’s tweet came as he faces significant uproar over a report in The Atlantic that said he disparaged military members.
The Defense Department, which notified Stars and Stripes in February that it intended to cut funding, said in an August 4 memo to the outlet’s publisher that it had “decided to discontinue the publication” of the newspaper.

The memo, first reported Friday by USA Today and independently obtained by CNN, instructed Stars and Stripes publisher Max Lederer to provide the Defense Department a plan that “dissolves” the organization by January 31, 2021. The memo said Stars and Stripes should cease publishing by September 30, 2020, when the fiscal year ends

A Defense Department spokesperson deferred to the President’s tweet when CNN asked for comment.

Stars and Stripes, which was first produced during the Civil War by Union soldiers, is partially funded by Congress. In its 2021 budget, the House specifically included funding for the publication. The Senate, however, has not released its appropriations bill for 2021.

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