NCC Harsh

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Air Force Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, arrived in Puerto Rico on Monday as the U.S. steps up its military operations against drug cartels in the Caribbean. Their arrival in the U.S. territory comes more than a week after ships carrying hundreds of U.S. Marines deployed to Puerto Rico for a training exercise, ...[Read More]

In one scene from National Geographic’s new limited series about naval fighter pilots, Navy Lt. j.g. Andrew Seepe speeds back to base in his T-45 Goshawk trainer following a successful skills test. High on the moment, he continues to accelerate until he’s about 100 over the prescribed limit of 350 knots. “Seepe, don’t ride the lightning,” a concerned tower operator radios. If this were a Tom Cruis...[Read More]

National Guard troops patrolling the streets of U.S. cities. Weapons of war deployed against international gangs suspected of drug trafficking. Military bases and resources redirected to mass immigration enforcement operations. President Donald Trump is swiftly implementing his vision of the military as an all-powerful tool for his policy goals. It’s ground that presidents have hardly ever crossed...[Read More]

Both chambers of Congress will work to advance the annual defense authorization bill this week, trying to navigate through hundreds of member amendment proposals and adopt final drafts to be used in upcoming conference negotiations. Senate leaders late last week set up votes starting Tuesday on the must-pass military legislation, which includes spending plans for hundreds of Defense Department pro...[Read More]

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Friday aiming to rebrand the Department of Defense as the Department of War — a long-telegraphed move aimed at projecting American military toughness around the globe. “It’s a much more appropriate name, especially in light of where the world is right now,” Trump said. He said the previous name was “woke.” The order comes as some of Trump’s closest ...[Read More]

The Pentagon has changed its drug screening policy to test service members for psilocin, indicating the use of psilocybin mushrooms, according to an Aug. 18 memo. Psilocin will be added to drug testing panels for troops as of Oct. 1, “due to the risk of impairment and subsequent deterioration of security, military fitness, readiness, good order and discipline,” according to the memo. Psilocybin mu...[Read More]

ATLANTA — Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced Friday that he’s sending 316 members of the state’s National Guard to Washington, D.C., later this month in the latest indication that President Donald Trump’s law enforcement operation in the nation’s capital will drag on. The Republican Kemp said he will mobilize the roughly 300 troops in mid-September to take part in Trump’s D.C. operation to relieve ...[Read More]

A set of Venezuelan military aircraft flew near a U.S. Navy vessel in international waters Thursday, two days after the U.S. said it struck a Venezuelan drug vessel, according to a Defense Department statement posted to X. Two Venezuelan F-16s conducted the aggressive maneuver over the USS Jason Dunham, an Arleigh Burke-class Aegis guided missile destroyer, in a clear “show of force,” a U.S. defen...[Read More]

CBS News, citing multiple Defense Department officials, had reported earlier that the incident involved two armed Venezuelan F-16s making a “show of force” over the USS Jason Dunham.