Defense

The dual-hat arrangement tying NSA director to Cyber Command chief was supposed to clarify cyber authorities. It has instead buried operational decisions under a pile of Title 10 and Title 50 turf battles that leave the workforce guessing who owns the mission.

Israel's June 2026 strikes on Iranian nuclear and missile sites exposed a pattern of Iranian escalation that Tehran believed the West would tolerate, and they show that deterrence collapses when adversaries stop fearing retaliation.

The 2027 defense budget funds a 313-ship fleet, but the Congressional Research Service warns the Navy is retiring hulls faster than it builds them. Without shipyard expansion and workforce reform, Washington will keep writing checks for a fleet that grows smaller every year.

European allies have finally crossed the two percent threshold, but collective defense in 2026 demands capability, not just cash. Washington should insist on deployable force structures, not budget box checking.

Fixed U.S. bases across the first island chain sit within range of China's DF-26 missile, which can reach roughly 4,000 kilometers. Washington should disperse forces, harden shelters, and fully fund Pacific Deterrence Initiative requests for Guam in fiscal year 2026.

The 2027 defense authorization markup should move persistent cyber operations from Title 10 warfighting constraints to Title 50 intelligence authority, because current legal seams let adversaries camp inside U.S. networks.

European allies spend far less on defense than the United States, and American taxpayers cover the gap through forward deployments and nuclear guarantees. Washington should make NATO's 2 percent GDP target a binding floor, not a rhetorical ceiling, or bring troops home.

European allies have spent decades underfunding their own defense while Washington footed the bill. It is long past time they paid their fair share.

A fresh cyber intrusion into a federal civilian network shows that Washington has spent billions on defense tools while leaving basic accountability behind.

U.S. intelligence officials believe the Chinese group Salt Typhoon maintains access to parts of the American telecom grid despite a multi-billion-dollar rip-and-replace effort. The breach exposes a cyber policy gap that Congress has talked about but refused to fund.

Salt Typhoon intrusions into U.S. telecom networks lasted for years before carriers discovered them, and the government's response has lagged behind the threat. Congress should require security rules for infrastructure instead of treating phone companies as passive victims.

The Salt Typhoon intrusions revealed that Chinese state actors roamed American telecom networks for months before carriers or agencies warned the public. The failure was operational, not merely technical, and it demands structural reform.

A long running cyber espionage campaign is hitting energy sector industrial control devices. Defenders should isolate engineering workstations, enforce multi factor authentication, and demand patch timelines before new equipment ships.

The United States spends nearly $850 billion on defense while most NATO allies still miss the two percent target, so Washington should condition troop deployments on proof that Europe will pay for its own security before our debt breaks the bank.

The Department of Veterans Affairs still carries more than 900,000 pending disability claims, and average wait times stretch past 120 days. Veterans earned faster decisions and honest answers. Washington must put service members before bureaucracy.

Separating U.S. Cyber Command from the National Security Agency sounds like reform, but it will not solve the deeper problem: unclear authorities, overclassified tool chains, and a workforce that spends more time briefing than operating.

American taxpayers sent roughly $119 billion to Ukraine between 2022 and early 2025, yet the VA backlog still leaves thousands of veterans waiting months for claims. A populist defense policy must put American fighters first.

The VA sits on 430,000 pending disability claims, and the solution is not another awareness campaign or a new app. Congress should strip bonuses from senior administrators until the backlog falls below 100,000 and veterans get answers within 125 days.

Washington keeps 100,000 troops in Europe while the VA backlog sits near 300,000 claims. NATO's wealthy members should finally field their own armies, freeing taxpayer money for the veterans who earned it. America First means putting American soldiers first.

The proposal to separate the NSA director and Cyber Command commander roles ignores how signals intelligence and military cyber operations actually depend on shared access, infrastructure, and legal authorities.

Europe's largest economies still shelter under the American security umbrella while our veterans wait months for VA care. It is finally time to bring troops home and put America first.

Huawei's expansion across Africa is not a commercial success story. It is a strategic penetration of government data centers, fiber networks, and surveillance systems that gives Beijing leverage over a rising continent. Washington must stop ignoring the threat and offer secure alternatives before the window closes.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps hides its cyber division behind front companies and proxies, but the digital trail betrays a sustained campaign against U.S. allies and critical infrastructure. Washington should stop pretending diplomacy will tame it.