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    Chuck Hagel Must Answer Chinese Challenge to U.S. Space Dominance

    When Congress holds hearings on Chuck Hagel’s nomination for Secretary of Defense, they should pay close attention to his position on U.S. space capabilities. As Secretary of Defense, he would have responsibility for ensuring that the U.S. maintains the ability to access space as necessary, a position that is increasingly … More

    Don’t Gut Our Military: $150 Billion in Commonsense Proposals to Prevent Sequestration

    Unless Congress acts, March 1 will trigger a $55 billion-per-year ($43 billion in 2013, as the fiscal cliff deal delayed the cuts for two months) cut in national defense, known as sequestration, which will weaken the United States’s ability to defend itself. But this does not have to happen; Congress … More

    Will Debt Ceiling Baby Step Lead Toward a Balanced Budget?

    The debt ceiling is bearing down on Washington. As with most such momentous occasions, plenty of partisan potshots have been exchanged, like this whopper from the White House: that House Republicans who are demanding spending reductions in exchange for increasing the debt limit would compromise the full faith and credit … More

    Russia Sails New Nuclear Submarine While U.S. Continues Fleet Delays

    Last week, after long delays, Russia made operational a new ballistic missile submarine (SSBN), or nuclear submarine, for the first time in over 20 years. This marks a significant step forward for the Russian Navy, which has pledged tens of billions of dollars to revitalize its fleet in the near … More

    DHS: Congressional Oversight Remains Broken

    Today, the new and newly re-elected Members of the 113th Congress were sworn in, among them many members of the 108 total committees and subcommittees with oversight over the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Yes, you read that right. As of the close of the last Congress, there were more … More

    Some Good, Some Bad in National Defense Authorization Act

    Last month, The Heritage Foundation compared the Senate and House versions of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) with Heritage’s policy positions on national security and defense. Now that the final version of the NDAA is available, it is possible to analyze which of Heritage’s national security and defense interests … More

    Morning Bell: 10 Facts on the Fiscal Cliff, Debt, and Spending

    Budget policy in 2012 was characterized by deficit spending, major increases in the national debt, and a heated debate over the “fiscal cliff.” With just days left for President Obama and lawmakers in Congress to avert a major tax hike, sequestration, and other major policy changes, today we bring you … More

    Defense Budget Priorities: Opting for American Decline

    Last week North Korea successfully launched an Unha-3 rocket, thereby demonstrating an alarming capability to target U.S. territory with ballistic missiles. China is rapidly expanding its fleets and arsenals in an unprecedented military build-up, while intimidating other countries in East Asia—including U.S. allies. The Middle East is a conflagration of … More

    The Eleventh Hour: Still Time Left to Stop Massive Defense Cuts

    The threat of sequestration—the half-trillion dollar cut to defense set to occur January 2, 2013—has been debated and prevention plans have been discussed since before it was even written into law. The budgetary measure was written to be so unpalatable that Congress and the Administration would have to find a … More

    The Heritage Foundation Bids Farewell to Retiring Senator Jon Kyl

    This month, Congress will lose one of the foremost champions of freedom and a strong national defense: Senator Jon Kyl (R–AZ). Senator Kyl has served three terms in the U.S. Senate after eight years in the U.S. House of Representatives. In his farewell speech, Kyl focused on economics, family values, … More