Subject: POLITICO's Morning Defense, presented by BAE Systems: Senate panel breaks with House on defense funding — Three deaths linked to SEAL training — Would registering women for the draft save money?
From: Morning Defense <[email-masked]>
To: <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 13 May 2016 06:32:11 -0600

By Jeremy Herb | 05/13/2016 08:30 AM EDT

With Louis Nelson and Connor O'Brien

PRO SCOOP - HOUSE DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS SUBCOMMITTEE REPORT: Morning D has gotten an early copy of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee report, which is here, for Pros. The subcommittee approved its defense spending bill and released a summary Wednesday, where we learned the panel added 11 F-35s, 14 F/A-18s, an extra LCS ship and more helicopters, as part of a $16 billion shift from the Overseas Contingency Operations fund into the base budget. Here's some more details from the report:

- EELV LAUNCHES: The bill cuts $295 million from the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle program, reducing the number of launches for the next fiscal year from five to three. The bill also reduces the program's infrastructure funding by $183 million to $586 million. EELV is the Air Force's space launch program that pits United Launch Alliance against SpaceX.

- MORE UPGRADES AND ADDS: The bill includes $148 million for C-130 upgrades, an additional $114 million for the WIN-T radio network, one additional MQ-4 Triton, four MQ-8 Fire Scouts and two more V-22s than requested.

- KILLING JLENS: The bill cuts most of the $45 million the Army requested for the Joint Land Attack Cruise Missile Defense Elevated Netted Sensor System, JLENS, leaving just $11 million for the program, not enough to fly the troubled surveillance blimp again.

SASC FINISHES NDAA - AND DIVERGES FROM THE HOUSE DEFENSE FUNDING STRATEGY, our colleague Connor O'Brien writes that Senate Armed Services Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) broke from his House counterparts in sticking with the Obama administration's $602 billion funding level. "We went with the president's budget request," McCain told POLITICO. "But we will be trying to adjust that on the floor."

The decision meant that the Senate Armed Services Committee had $18 billion less for base budget programs, and many increases in the House authorization and appropriations bills aren't in the Senate measure. The bill does not add any extra F-35s or F/A-18 fighters, and it sticks to two Littoral Combat Ships - as well as reaffirming Defense Secretary Ash Carter's desire to limit the program to 40 ships. And it doesn't restore the proposed end-strength reductions for the Army and Marine Corps. Here are some other highlights:

- ACQUISITION REFORMS: McCain's bill would eliminate the Pentagon's position of undersecretary for acquisition, technology and logistics, currently Frank Kendall. It splits the role into two positions: the undersecretary for research engineering and the renamed undersecretary of management and support. The measure would also disband the F-35's Joint Program Office after the program's full rate production decision in 2019.

- CUTTING STARS AND STAFF: The bill would reduce the number of general and flag officers by 25 percent, cutting the number of four-star billets from 41 to 27. It would direct the defense secretary to pick one combatant command as a pilot for an alternative organizational structure. And it would limit the size of the National Security Council to 150.

- WOMEN AND THE DRAFT: The Senate's version of the NDAA requires women to register for the military draft starting in 2018 and creates a national commission to study the future of the Selective Service System.

- RUSSIAN ROCKET ENGINES: The measure maintains the limit of nine Russian-made RD-180 engines for competitive launches, included in last year's bill (ULA argues the number is effectively four.). It also adds language that would allow up to half of development funds for a new U.S. engine to go toward "offsetting any potential increase in launch costs as a result of prohibitions on Russian rocket engines."

- IMMIGRANT VISAS: The bill doesn't extend the Afghan Special Immigrant Visa Program for translators who worked with the U.S. military. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) unsuccessfully proposed an amendment to extend the program for one year and authorize an additional 4,000 visas and vowed to push a fix on the Senate floor. And McCain said he would work with Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) to reauthorize the program.

THE MONTH AHEAD FOR THE FOUR DEFENSE BILLS: It's going to be a busy month on Capitol Hill for defense legislation. Here's a quick look at what's ahead: The House National Defense Authorization Act goes to the House Rules Committee Monday, which sets a likely Tuesday start on the floor. The full House Appropriations Committee will mark up the defense spending measure on Tuesday, too. 

McCain said Thursday the Senate could take up the NDAA the week before the Memorial Day recess. And Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says the Senate's defense spending bill will come with the authorization measure.

HAPPY FRIDAY AND WELCOME TO MORNING DEFENSE, where we're glad to have survived this week in one piece. Now we'll all over again next week. Keep the lookout tips, pitches and feedback coming at [email-masked], and follow on Twitter @jeremyherb, @morningdefense and @politicopro.

MORNING D TRIVIA: We took a brief trivia hiatus during the NDAA (and vacation), but Morning D trivia is back! Here's today's question: This week in 1863, which Civil War general died of pneumonia a week after his own troops accidentally shot him? The first person to email the correct answer to Morning D ([email-masked]) wins a mention in Monday's edition.

HAPPENING TODAY - NORTHCOM CHANGE OF COMMAND CEREMONY: Air Force Gen. Lori Robinson is sworn in as the new commander of the Northern Command and NORAD, at a ceremony attended by Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Joe Dunford.

** A message from BAE Systems: At BAE Systems, we deliver capabilities that give our customers an edge-from advanced electronic systems and amphibious combat vehicles to leading-edge precision naval guns and weapons, and from cyber operations and intelligence analysis to world-class ship maintenance and modernization. Learn more: www.baesystems.com/SAS. **

WAR REPORT - MORE BOMBINGS IN IRAQ, The Associated Press reports this morning on a third straight day of Islamic State bombings in Iraq: "A group of gunmen, including two suicide bombers, stormed a coffee shop in a town north of Baghdad early Friday, leaving at least 13 people dead and 15 wounded, Iraqi officials said.

"No group immediately claimed responsibility for the assault in Balad, 50 miles north of the Iraqi capital. The attack came on the heels of a two-day wave of bombings in Baghdad that killed nearly 100 people - attacks that have been claimed by the Islamic State group. The deadliest struck the sprawling Shiite neighborhood of Sadr City in northeast Baghdad on Wednesday, killing 63 people." 

- ISLAMIC STATE ROCKET ATTACKS DRIVE REFUGEES FROM TURKISH BORDER TOWN, via The Wall Street Journal: "The number of deadly Islamic State rocket attacks on Kilis has risen dramatically in recent weeks as the extremist group fights to retain control of a 60-mile stretch of the Turkey-Syria border it has used for years as a vital supply route. At least 15 people have been killed by rocket strikes in Kilis since April, of 21 killed since mid-January, when the U.S. and Turkey launched a campaign to push Islamic State away from the border."

- HEZBOLLAH COMMANDER KILLED IN SYRIA, via the AP: "Lebanon's militant Hezbollah group said Friday that its top military commander who was supervising its military operations in Syria, Mustafa Badreddine, was killed in an explosion in Damascus, a major blow to the Shiite group which has played a significant role in the conflict next door."

TOP TALKER - THREE DEATHS LINKED TO RECENT NAVY SEAL TRAINING CLASSES, reports The Washington Post: "A sailor has died in three out of the last four Navy SEAL training classes, with one drowning days ago during a pool exercise and another committing suicide in April after failing to complete one of the U.S. military's most demanding training programs. A third sailor, who had been drinking heavily, died in November after his pickup truck rolled off the side of the road, less than three days after learning he had just barely missed the cut to continue training.

"All three men were trying to complete a grueling six-month course that serves as a gateway into the storied community of Navy SEALs. The training includes a seven-day stretch of little sleep, self-induced hypothermia and brutal physical conditioning known as 'Hell Week.' ... The rash of deaths raises questions about the safety of trainees and whether the Navy is providing adequate supervision for the approximately 80 percent of trainees who drop out, leaving many of them despondent after years of hope and preparation and months of intense training."

THE BUDGET QUESTION - WOULD DRAFTING WOMEN SAVE MONEY? It's complicated. The Congressional Budget Office's analysis of the House NDAA, released Wednesday, estimates the bill's provision requiring women aged 18 to 26 register with Selective Service would save the government $56 million in mandatory funding over the next 10 years. The nonpartisan scorekeeper said the savings would materialize when women who fail to register for the draft lose their eligibility for federal benefits, most notably Pell Grants for college. The CBO added it would also save an extra $7 million in discretionary costs related to Pell Grants.

On the flipside, the CBO estimates Selective Service would need an additional $33 million over the next five years to pay for more staff, office space and equipment to handle the influx of new registrants as well as to publicize the new requirement. "This is a great example of why Congress created CBO in the first place," said defense budget expert Todd Harrison of the Center for Strategic and International Studies. "They are the independent body of experts who sit around and think about the second and third order budgetary effects of policy changes."

SPEED READ

- The Navy fires the commander of the 10 U.S. sailors who wandered into Iranian territorial waters and were captured: Reuters

- The U.S. has established two small outposts in Libya for special operations troops to line up local partners ahead of a potential offensive against the Islamic State: The Washington Post

- Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) enlisted former Secretary of State James Baker to go after Trump at a Senate committee hearing Thursday: POLITICO

- The U.S. Army's war over Russia: POLITICO Magazine

- The Pentagon is pushing ahead with aid to communities where the Army has cut thousands of active-duty troops: POLITICO Pro

- Pentagon officials push back their planned timeline for the Iraqi military to retake Mosul from the Islamic State: The Daily Beast

- The first shipment of U.S. Mine-Resistant, Ambush-Protected Vehicles - MRAPs - are delivered to the Egyptian military: Defense News

- Newly installed U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Vincent Brooks tours the Demilitarized Zone with the chairman of South Korea's joint chiefs of staff: Stars and Stripes

- A group of House lawmakers accuse congressional leaders of playing politics with a war authorization against the Islamic State: Stars and Stripes

- Patrick Murphy has had a whirlwind year, from the May 2015 Amtrak train derailment to becoming acting Army secretary: The Washington Post

** A message from BAE Systems: At BAE Systems, we work relentlessly to stay ahead of any challenge our customers may face. Our passion and dedication shows in everything we do-from advanced electronic systems to cyber operations and intelligence analysis, from combat vehicles and naval weapons, and from ship maintenance and modernization to vehicle upgrades and services. Knowing that our work makes a difference inspires us to push ourselves and the technologies we create to new levels. That's BAE Systems. That's Inspired Work. Learn more about our technologies, systems and services at www.baesystems.com/US. **

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