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Browse major news stories and see what officials have said.

Sep 25, 2026· Updated

Senate Democrats Demand a Navy Accounting for the USS Abraham Lincoln's Record 250-Day Deployment as Hegseth Calls Reports of Sailors Going Overboard "Completely Misrepresented"

On Wednesday, August 12, 2026, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, sent a letter to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao demanding an accounting of conditions aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 3 supporting operations in the war against Iran. The Lincoln left San Diego in November 2025 on what was scheduled as a roughly seven-month deployment. By mid-August 2026 it had been at sea more than 250 days and had gone more than 200 days without a port call, a record for consecutive days at sea. Reporting by Military Times and Stars and Stripes, drawing on sailors' families, described shortages of basic supplies, water contamination, plumbing failures, deck safety problems, disrupted mail, and deteriorating mental health aboard the ship — including accounts that at least two sailors had been stopped from jumping overboard and that another entered the water and was recovered. A U.S. official confirmed to ABC News that a sailor went overboard in early August and was quickly recovered; CENTCOM disputed the broader characterization. Blumenthal's letter was joined by demands from other Senate Democrats: Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) called for a bipartisan congressional delegation to visit the ship, and Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), a former Navy combat pilot, called the reports "disturbing" and tied them to an undefined mission. On Thursday, August 13, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called for Hegseth's firing. Hegseth pushed back the same day, telling reporters the accounts were "completely misrepresented" and defending the Navy's support for the crew. A Navy official said the Lincoln was "operating in a highly contested environment where traditional supply hubs in the Middle East were disrupted by combat actions" and that the command had not identified an increase in reported suicidal ideation. The Pentagon subsequently announced the USS George Washington would deploy to the Middle East to relieve the Lincoln. No Senate or House Republican was found on the record about the Lincoln's conditions during this window; Congress was in August recess.

“That this administration can find endless taxpayer dollars for bombs, ballrooms, and billionaires, but cannot take care of our service members, is completely unacceptable. … The American people need hearings, accountability and a clear plan to protect our service members and prioritize American families.”
Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) · Sep 25, 2026

Trump Military Strikes on Alleged Drug Boats in Caribbean and Pacific

Beginning September 2, 2025, the Trump administration launched a sustained military campaign of lethal strikes against vessels in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific that the administration described as drug-trafficking boats operated by designated narco-terrorist organizations, principally Venezuela's Tren de Aragua. The first strike — announced personally by President Trump — killed 11 people on a vessel that had departed Venezuela. By late March 2026, the U.S. military had conducted more than 47 strikes on at least 48 vessels, killing at least 163 people, under what the Pentagon branded "Operation Southern Spear." The campaign has triggered an escalating war powers and legality fight in Congress. The Washington Post revealed in November 2025 that on the very first strike Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had given a "kill them all" order, and that a follow-on "double tap" strike killed two survivors clinging to the burning wreckage. Both House and Senate Armed Services committees opened bipartisan probes. Sens. Tim Kaine, Adam Schiff, Rand Paul and Chuck Schumer forced repeat war powers votes, all defeated by the Republican Senate majority — most recently on January 8, 2026 (52-47 to advance, then defeated on final passage). Critics across both parties argue the strikes are extrajudicial killings without congressional authorization and may constitute war crimes; defenders, led by Secretary Rubio and Sen. Lindsey Graham, characterize the boats' operators as terrorists in an "armed conflict" with the United States.

“Well again, it depends, and we still blow up ships.”
Marco Rubio (R-FL) · Sep 9, 2026

The Iran War Restarts After a Month-Long Lull: U.S. Forces Hit Larak Island, Iran Fires Missiles at Two American Air Bases in Jordan and a Drone at the UAE, and Trump Posts an AI Video of Iran's Main Oil Terminal "Being Blown to Smithereens"

On Sunday, August 30, 2026, U.S. forces struck two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz — the first American strike on Iran in more than a month. U.S. Central Command said Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps units had been observed preparing to fire rockets carrying sea mines into the strait, and described the operation as limited and precise action against an imminent threat. The IRGC called it an act of aggression and vowed a response. The response came overnight. The IRGC launched an operation it named "Punishment of the Aggressor," firing ballistic missiles at the King Hussein and Al Azraq air bases in Jordan, both of which host American forces, and a drone at Al Minhad Air Base in the United Arab Emirates. Iran claimed heavy damage to infrastructure, maintenance facilities and fighter jet positions, and said it had also downed a U.S. MQ-9 Reaper over the Strait of Hormuz. Jordan's military said it intercepted eight ballistic missiles before they threatened any infrastructure or troops; the UAE Ministry of Defense said it intercepted the drone with no damage or casualties. A U.S. official told CNN there were no reported impacts. President Trump told Fox News the United States would answer: "We're going to hit them hard. There will be a response." He then posted an AI-generated video to Truth Social captioned "Kharg Island being blown to smithereens!!!" — Kharg being Iran's main oil-export terminal, and a target the administration has repeatedly threatened but, as of the posting, had not struck. Analysts who checked the clip confirmed it was synthetic; hours later there was no evidence Kharg had been attacked. Trump also posted that "Iran is officially a Failed Nation. IT IS DEAD!" Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who has been running the "economic D-Day" sanctions campaign against Tehran, read the exchange as evidence the pressure is working: "I would think that they are lashing out kinetically because they are losing economically." Congress was largely out of position to respond. The House returned from its August recess on August 31; the Senate was in pro forma session and does not return until September 14. As of the evening of August 31, no member of Congress had issued an on-record statement specifically about the Larak strike or the Jordan and UAE retaliation.

“The Houthis, in many ways, are agents and proxies of the Iranians. Behind some of this is clearly the Iranian hand. The US has a very strong defensive, military relationship with Saudi Arabia. We're watching those events very closely.”
Marco Rubio (R-FL) · Sep 8, 2026

The Pentagon Fires the Publisher, Editor-in-Chief and a Reporter of Stars and Stripes for "Insubordination" — the Editor Says It Was for Saying on CBS That Censoring the Troops’ Newspaper Would Be a Red Line

On Friday, August 21, 2026, the Pentagon issued separation notices to three people at Stars and Stripes: publisher Max Lederer, who had held the job for 19 years; editor-in-chief Erik Slavin; and Middle East reporter Lara Korte. The stated cause was insubordination. Slavin said he was told his dismissal was tied to a "CBS Sunday Morning" segment that aired in July, in which he was asked a hypothetical about censorship of news for service members and answered that it would be a red line. Stars and Stripes is partially funded by the Defense Department but has operated with statutory editorial independence since the Civil War era. The firings capped a months-long sequence: a March memo tightening the department's oversight of the newsroom and imposing content restrictions; the April termination of the paper's ombudsman, a post Congress created specifically to protect its independence; and, this month, the installation of an active-duty Navy public affairs officer, Capt. William Urban, as a "military deputy" to the publisher — reportedly without consulting Lederer, who announced his retirement days later. Defense Department spokesman Sean Parnell was unapologetic, saying the department would "refocus its content away from woke distractions that syphon morale" and that the paper would be "custom tailored to our warfighters." Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) called the firings "political interference and intimidation" and said he would seek Senate Armed Services Committee hearings and changes in the National Defense Authorization Act. The day before the firings, Blumenthal, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) had written to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth demanding answers by August 28 about the Urban appointment and Lederer's departure. The firings followed Stars and Stripes reporting on conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln during its record 250-day deployment — coverage that is itself the subject of a separate Senate inquiry.

“They fired the editor of the Stars and Stripes, an independent newspaper that’s been around since 1861.”
Jason Crow (D-CO) · Sep 6, 2026

U.S. Pauses Iran Bombing Campaign as Military Leaders Warn Trump About Dwindling Munitions Stockpiles

The United States paused its bombing campaign against Iran on the night of Friday, July 24, 2026, after nearly two weeks of consecutive nightly strikes, with operations placed "on a hold" according to a Defense Department source. On July 25 the military announced no new strikes for the first time in two weeks. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine had raised concerns in a White House meeting about the state of U.S. munitions stockpiles, telling Trump the military could execute the available options but warning of the implications. President Trump publicly dismissed the concerns, acknowledging the U.S. would like more of "the more sophisticated stuff" while insisting the military has what it needs and blaming the Biden administration for transfers to Ukraine. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Mike Waltz conceded "a lot of stockpiles are depleted." The pause landed in the middle of a budget fight: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Gen. Caine asked senators to approve an $87.6 billion supplemental, including roughly $40 billion to expand production of solid rocket motors, precision-guided bombs, hypersonic weapons and counter-drone systems, while House Republicans advanced a separate $95 billion reconciliation framework. Senate Armed Services Chairman Roger Wicker (R-MS) said the services' munitions stockpiles are "under extreme strain," and Democrats including Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI) and Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) argued the depletion showed the war lacked a coherent strategy.

“Munitions have been depleted. The stockpiles are very low, contrary to what Donald Trump wants us to believe.”
Jason Crow (D-CO) · Sep 6, 2026

Hegseth Pentagon Purge of Senior Military Officers

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has fired or forced out more than a dozen senior military officers since taking office, including Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. CQ Brown, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti, and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George. The purge, framed as removing "woke" generals and restoring a "warrior ethos," has drawn bipartisan concern — particularly after the firing of Gen. George in April 2026 during the active U.S.-Iran conflict. Five former defense secretaries condemned the firings as "reckless" in a joint letter to Congress.

“He's consolidating power. That's clear.”
John Kennedy (R-LA) · Sep 6, 2026

The Army Secretary Quits After Eighteen Months of Losing to Hegseth Over Who Gets to Be a General — and the Senate Armed Services Ranking Democrat Says the Defense Secretary Is "Cultivating a Culture Where Dissent Is Punished"

Army Secretary Dan Driscoll submitted his resignation to the White House on Monday, August 31, 2026, effective September 3, after eighteen months of escalating conflict with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth over control of Army senior officer promotions. Driscoll, an Iraq War veteran, tech investor and close friend of Vice President JD Vance whom he met at Yale Law School, became the youngest Army secretary in history at 38 and was known inside the building as the president's "drone guy" for his focus on Army modernization. The break point was personnel. Hegseth has removed at least 45 officers from promotion lists selected by their own peers this year, more than half of them women or Black officers, and in late August pulled four more Army colonels off the brigadier general list over their ties to Gen. Randy George — the Army chief of staff Hegseth fired without explanation in April — and Gen. Chris Donahue, the U.S. Army Europe and Africa commander he ousted in June. Reporting indicates Driscoll refused to strike names from a promotion list when Hegseth asked, and Hegseth did it himself. In his resignation, Driscoll raised concerns about Army transformation and readiness and about Hegseth blocking those efforts by firing the generals responsible. The White House praised Driscoll's tenure without acknowledging the dispute. Hegseth is reportedly weighing Pentagon chief spokesperson Sean Parnell as a successor, a pick that would face a difficult Senate confirmation. Driscoll was unusually well regarded by lawmakers in both parties, and the reactions to his exit split along a familiar line: Republicans praised the departing secretary, Democrats used the occasion to indict the man he was fighting.

“I am pleased to announce that Adam Telle, the current Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works, will become Acting Secretary of the Army, effective immediately. He is a Great Patriot, who is respected by all.”
Donald Trump (R-FL) · Sep 3, 2026

Aug 30, 2026· Updated

Trump Signs an Executive Order Creating a "U.S. Space Academy" on Par With West Point — and Colorado's Senator Answers That the Country Already Has One, "It's Called the U.S. Air Force Academy"

On August 28, 2026, at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, President Trump awarded the Congressional Space Medal of Honor to the Artemis II crew and then signed an executive order establishing a U.S. Space Academy — a service academy he said would rank alongside West Point, Annapolis and the Air Force Academy, feeding graduates into the Space Force, NASA and the commercial space industry. The order does not actually create an academy. It creates a Presidential Commission on the United States Space Academy, chaired by the NASA administrator, with 120 days to recommend a governance structure, a curriculum, a location and the congressional action that would be required to stand the institution up. Trump said a site would be chosen "very shortly," and noted lawmakers were already lobbying for their own states. The reaction split along predictable lines but with an unusual geographic overlay. Rep. Brian Babin, whose Texas district includes Johnson Space Center, pitched Houston. Sen. John Hickenlooper — whose state hosts the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, the institution that already commissions Space Force officers — called the plan "duplicative, costly, and unserious." Rep. George Whitesides, the former Virgin Galactic CEO, took the proposal seriously enough to itemize what is missing from it: no congressional representation on the commission, no stated purpose distinct from existing universities, and no answer on where roughly $1 billion a year would come from. A congressionally mandated oversight body, the Air Force Academy Board of Visitors, had already recommended against a standalone institution earlier in 2026, suggesting a dedicated Space Force facility on the existing Colorado Springs campus instead.

“Another bold step by @POTUS to ensure America leads in space for generations to come. Let’s bring it to Texas!”
Brian Babin (R-TX) · Aug 30, 2026

A Pentagon Memo Says the Navy Is "Raiding" Its Own Payroll Accounts to Pay for the Iran War — and the Chief of Naval Operations Says He Needs $8 Billion More Just to Stay Solvent

On August 27, 2026, the Guardian reported, based on internal documents and interviews, that Operation Epic Fury — the war with Iran — has pushed the US Navy into a severe financial crisis. One Pentagon memo on Navy funding warns of "shortfalls in payroll" accounts because the department has been "raiding" them to cover combat operations, backfilling with money not yet spent elsewhere. Equipment and facility maintenance accounts are being drained the same way, and exercises and training have been limited or canceled to bridge the gap until the 2027 fiscal year begins on October 1. A Navy spokesperson disputed that pay is at risk, saying the department "is actively managing its resources to meet current pay obligations on time." The next day, August 28, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle used his State of the Navy address in Norfolk to put a number on it: the Navy needs $6 billion to $8 billion above what was budgeted "to be whole and solvent for [Fiscal Year] 26." More than 27,000 sailors and two dozen ships supported the Iran campaign. Asked about the size of the administration's proposed $1.5 trillion defense budget, Caudle said he was not offended by it — "I need my money." Caudle had warned Congress in May that the Navy could run out of money by July: "The FY '26 budget didn't bake in Epic Fury." The White House has asked Congress for an emergency infusion of $67 billion; House Republicans floated $73 billion through reconciliation. At a July 21 Senate Appropriations hearing, Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) said she had been told "some military services face near-term solvency challenges." House Armed Services member Rep. Pat Harrigan (R-NC) told colleagues to "get rid of the complacency," and Rep. Betty McCollum (D-MN), the top Democrat on the House defense appropriations panel, said Congress needs "to know what we're purchasing and why."

“I need my money. I don’t think we should be offended by $1.5 trillion.”
Daryl Caudle (O) · Aug 28, 2026

Hegseth Polled the Nine Combatant Commanders on Killing the Military's Civilian-Protection Program Expecting Them to Call It "Woke" — Every One Said Keep It, and He Cut It Anyway

ProPublica reported on August 25, 2026 that before gutting the Pentagon's Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response program, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth put the question to the nation's top combatant commanders. He appears to have expected them to agree with him that protecting civilians was a "woke" distraction from "maximum lethality." Instead, according to internal documents and current and former defense officials, every command that answered said the program should be preserved. Gen. Erik Kurilla appealed the decision directly. Hegseth made the cuts regardless. CHMR was created by Congress and built out over more than a decade of bipartisan work following civilian-casualty failures in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria and Somalia. Under Hegseth the Defense Department fired the staff of the Civilian Protection Center of Excellence and cut CHMR positions at the combatant commands by more than 90 percent. Hegseth has publicly framed the broader project in his own words: "We became 'the woke department.' … We're done with that shit," and "No more politically correct and overbearing rules of engagement." The consequences arrived with the Iran war. The U.S. military has killed hundreds of noncombatants since the mission was gutted, including a strike on a school. A Defense Department inspector general report and the resulting congressional letters became the paper trail. After the blowback, the department is now weighing a partial restoration of the program it dismantled. Congress had been on this before the August revelation. On April 20, Sens. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) opened an investigation with nine colleagues, writing that Hegseth's attempts to gut the institutions "contradicts more than a decade of bipartisan consensus and DoD-led reforms." On July 6, Warren led ten lawmakers — including combat veterans Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) and Rep. Jason Crow (D-CO) — in a letter accusing the administration of acting "potentially in violation of federal law." Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA), the ranking Democrat on House Armed Services, told Hegseth flatly: "You are in violation of the law right now on civilian harm." No Republican member of Congress is on record about the commanders' poll as of publication. The Pentagon's response to the letters has been that it "will respond directly to the authors."

“No more politically correct and overbearing rules of engagement.”
Pete Hegseth (R-MN) · Aug 25, 2026

The Air Force Charges a Major Under Article 88 for Calling Trump a "Failure" — His Lawyer Says He Is the First Officer of His Rank Ever Charged With Contempt Toward the President

On Monday, August 24, 2026, the Air Force preferred charges against Maj. Jason P. Watson, an officer last assigned to Poland, over public statements calling for President Trump's impeachment. The charge sheet his attorney released lists ten specifications across three articles of the Uniform Code of Military Justice: three under Article 88 (contempt toward officials), five under Article 92 (failure to obey an order), and two under Article 133 (conduct unbecoming an officer). Article 88 is the provision that makes it a crime for a commissioned officer to use "contemptuous words" against the President, Vice President, Congress and other named officials. It is rarely invoked, and prosecutors must show the words were contemptuous rather than merely critical. Watson's counsel, Christopher Mutimer, says Watson is the first major in the history of the U.S. military to be charged under it. The Article 88 specifications trace to three things: a June interview Watson gave the Substack newsletter Defenders of Our Republic, a July 1 protest in uniform on the steps of the U.S. Capitol, and an August 17 CNN interview in which he said Trump "is flagrantly violating the Constitution, breaking the law, engaged in rampant corruption, and is killing Americans." The July 1 demonstration was held alongside Rep. Al Green (D-TX), who was calling for the impeachment of both Trump and Vice President JD Vance. Watson was arrested there, then taken into pretrial confinement again on August 18 — a day after the CNN interview — after telling his chain of command he would no longer wear the uniform. The Article 92 and 133 counts allege he wrongfully wore the uniform at the Capitol, violated leave regulations to travel to Washington, and then refused to wear the uniform. Watson has remained in military pretrial confinement. "Who I am is immaterial," he said in a statement through counsel. "In the grand scheme of things, I'm just a nobody. What matters far more than who I am is what I have to say and the price I'm willing to pay to say it." The case tests where military law ends and political speech begins at a moment when the administration has already fired the leadership of Stars and Stripes over what its editor called censorship of the troops' newspaper. Active-duty service members do not have the same First Amendment latitude as civilians, and the Air Force has framed the prosecution as ordinary accountability. As of publication, Green is the only member of Congress on record about the case.

“Pursuant to a thorough investigation — which will proceed unimpeded — commanders will ensure appropriate disposition when holding service members accountable in accordance with military law and due process.”
Troy Meink (R) · Aug 25, 2026

Aug 25, 2026· Updated

The Navy Moves to Strip Doris Miller’s Name From the Aircraft Carrier It Named for Him During Trump’s First Term — and Internally Discusses Putting the Sitting President’s Name on It Instead

CNN reported on August 20, 2026 that the Navy is working to rename the Ford-class aircraft carrier CVN-81, which since January 2020 has been designated the future USS Doris Miller. Two of the three sources familiar with the internal discussions said there have been conversations about renaming it for President Trump — a step with no precedent, because no U.S. aircraft carrier has ever been named for a sitting president. Doris "Dorie" Miller was a mess attendant aboard the USS West Virginia at Pearl Harbor. He carried wounded sailors to safety and then manned a .50-caliber anti-aircraft gun he had never been trained to use, firing until the ammunition ran out. Admiral Chester Nimitz awarded him the Navy Cross in 1942, making him the first Black American to receive it. Miller was killed in 1943 when the escort carrier Liscome Bay was torpedoed. The decision to name CVN-81 for him was made during Trump's first term and made the ship the first U.S. carrier named for an enlisted sailor and the first named for an African American. According to the reporting, the effort has been under way since earlier this year; Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao's office has also been rewriting the official guidance on how ships are named and who may be named, including presidents. The Navy has effectively stopped using the name internally and refers to the ship only by its hull number. One source said the Navy intends to name a different, smaller warship for Miller and is recommending him for the Medal of Honor. The Navy is under time pressure: the keel-laying ceremony is expected at the end of 2026. A Pentagon official said there was "nothing official to announce at this time." Miller's family said they learned of it from the press. His great-nephew Thomas Bledsoe told ABC News that "for our family, it was quite a shock to hear that there was conversation about the possibility of renaming the Doris Miller carrier, and so not only was it a shock but it was a shock in that we found out from a news outlet." The two members of Congress who responded most directly are both combat veterans: Sen. Mark Kelly, a former Navy pilot who flew 39 combat missions, and Rep. Jason Crow, a former Army Ranger. NAACP President Derrick Johnson called the reported plan "a slap in the face to every war hero and every service member who has worn the uniform," and tied it to the conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln, which had just returned from a record deployment.

“The audacity to even suggest that we replace the name of Doris Miller, a hero whose courage shined on one of our nation’s darkest days, with draft-dodging Donald Trump is disgusting.”
Donald Norcross (D-NJ) · Aug 25, 2026

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