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The week ahead in Congress The New York Times    Share    Senate Democrats will try to take up the annual military authorization bill today, having promised to turn it into a legislative goodie bag of election-year priorities for their party’s base, including a measure that would provide a path to citizenship for some illegal immigrants who arrived in the United States as children. To bring the bill to the Senate floor, Democrats need the support of at least one Republican, and given the tense campaign atmosphere, they are unlikely to get it. The showdown is set for 2:15 p.m. today and it is likely to be the main action — or inaction as the case may be — in Congress this week. More The Senate takes up 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' The Wall Street Journal    Share    The annual defense authorization bill contains $725 billion for the Pentagon, a pay increase for service members, and a repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy comes up for a key vote in the Senate. Democrats also want to fold in the Dream Act, which would give a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants who came to the U.S. as minors. A key vote on the legislation is scheduled for this afternoon, when senators will decide whether to close debate and let the bill proceed to the Senate floor. More BUDGET Gates details $100 billion in defense cuts The Washington Post    Share    Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates laid out details of his plans to save $100 billion in five years as he tries to run the Pentagon more efficiently. Pentagon spending has doubled, when measured in current dollars, in the past decade but its budget is expected to grow only slightly each year over the next decade. More US Senate panel lops $8.1 billion off 2011 budget Defense News    Share    The Senate Appropriations Committee lopped $8.1 billion off the 2011 defense budget Sept. 16, mainly by cutting two top-priority U.S. Air Force and Navy weapons programs, and trimming dozens of smaller programs. The appropriators approved cutting Joint Strike Fighter production from 42 planes to 32, and to build just one Littoral Combat Ship instead of two in fiscal 2011, which begins Oct. 1. More Air Force Village West A retirement community located in Riverside, California for military officers and federal government officials (GS7 and above). AFVW offers great benefits and on-campus health care facilities. MORE Advertisement Senate subcommittee votes to cut LCS buys Navy Times    Share    A key Senate subcommittee voted to cut top priority purchases by the Navy and Air Force in 2011 to help trim $8 billion from the 2011 defense spending bill. The Senate defense appropriations subcommittee approved cutting Joint Strike Fighter production from 42 planes to 32, and to build just one Littoral Combat Ship, not two, in 2011. More EQUIPMENT US Air Force to start developing first new bomber since Northrop's B-2 Bloomberg Businessweek    Share    The U.S. Air Force expects to start working on a new bomber in the next budget, the first such warplane since Northrop Grumman Corp.'s B-2 Spirit was developed almost three decades ago. “It’s my conviction that the nation benefits from a long- range strike capability,” General Norton Schwartz, chief of staff for the Air Force, said today at the annual Air & Space Conference in National Harbor, Md. More EADS open to adjusting US tanker bid Reuters Uk    Share    EADS said its A330-based aerial refueling plane hit another key milestone after refueling another A330 tanker, and could adjust its bid for a U.S. military contract if the Air Force asked for proposal revisions. The Air Force has been evaluating rival bids from EADS and Boeing Co in a competition valued at up to $50 billion, since July, with an eye to awarding a contract this fall. More Boeing likely to lose ruling The Wall Street Journal    Share    The ruling may also influence a separate competition between Boeing and EADS to sell the U.S. Defense Department as many as 179 tanker airplanes for about $30 billion. EADS is offering a variant of its A330 passenger jet, an Airbus model the WTO said was improperly subsidized. More Pentagon's second-engine estimate sparks debate Reuters    Share    A new government report boosts the case for completion of General Electric Co's alternate engine for the multinational F-35 Joint Strike Fighter jet, the head of the Senate Armed Services Committee said. The issue has become a political hot potato for President Barack Obama, who has vowed to veto any legislation that would fund the second engine over Pentagon protests. More BENEFITS VA sanctioned Prudential's withholding of insurance payments to soldiers' survivors Bloomberg via The Washington Post    Share    The Department of Veterans Affairs failed to inform 6 million soldiers and their families of an agreement enabling Prudential Financial to withhold lump-sum payments of life insurance benefits for survivors of fallen service members, according to records made public through a Freedom of Information request. More NATIONAL SECURITY Senator Corker backs Republican resolution on Russia Nuclear Arms Treaty Bloomberg    Share    Senator Bob Corker, a senior Republican on the Foreign Relations Committee, said he will vote to send a nuclear arms-reduction treaty to the full Senate under conditions that address his party's questions about the pact with Russia. More RESERVE & GUARD MOBILIZED National Guard (In Federal Status) and Reserve Activated as of Sept. 14, 2010 U.S. Department of Defense    Share    This week the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps announced a decrease in activated reservists, while the Air Force and Coast Guard announced an increase. The net collective result is 816 fewer reservists activated than last week. At any given time, services may activate some units and individuals while deactivating others, making it possible for these figures to either increase or decrease. The total number currently on active duty from the Army National Guard and Army Reserve is 73,840; Navy Reserve, 6,927; Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve, 15,600; Marine Corps Reserve, 4,051; and the Coast Guard Reserve, 791. This brings the total National Guard and Reserve personnel who have been activated to 101,209, including both units and individual augmentees. More

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