Rowan Scarborough

Inspector general: Bush-era Pentagon officials cleared of wrongdoing

A three-year government investigation has found no wrongdoing by Bush-era Pentagon officials when they gave war briefings to retired military analysts who served as TV and radio commentators.

September 24, 2011

Military warned not to harass openly homosexual troops

The nation's highest military leaders warned troops Tuesday not to harass gays who emerge from the closet as the ban on coming out officially ended.

September 20, 2011

Pentagon downplays ending of ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’

The United States formally ends a decades-old ban on open gays in the ranks on Tuesday, a historic day that the military services hope will pass as routinely as roll calls, marching and lights-out.

September 19, 2011

Lehman rocks Navy with complaints about political correctness

The Navy's former top civilian has rocked the service in a military journal article by accusing officials of sinking the storied naval air branch into a sea of political correctness.

September 18, 2011

Republicans seek a ceiling on defense cuts

Republicans on Capitol Hill are floating the idea of a ceiling for defense cuts mandated by the deficit-reduction supercommittee that would not exceed $150 billion over 10 years.

September 14, 2011

Methodical approach slows start of Mohammed trial

The military officer overseeing the prosecution of Khalid Sheik Mohammed is taking a go-slow approach that would bring the confessed Sept. 11 mastermind to trial months, or perhaps years, from now.

September 9, 2011

9/11 changed war-fighting

The Sept. 11 attacks jolted the U.S. armed forces into a new era of war-fighting in which commando strikes, intelligence collection and manhunts often overshadowed heavy armor and big bombers of yesteryear's conflicts.

September 8, 2011

After winning key right, gays press for more from military

With the official end of the U.S. military's ban two weeks away, gay-rights activists are pressing the Pentagon for more than just the right to serve openly.

September 5, 2011

Pentagon ponders budget cuts in face of ‘perfect storm’

The Pentagon is considering a range of options to meet a bipartisan call to greatly reduce defense spending in what is a "perfect storm" rocking the military's once-sturdy budget plans.

August 31, 2011

Pentagon mulls ways to make major cuts

The Pentagon is considering a range of options to meet a bipartisan call to greatly reduce defense spending in what is a "perfect storm" rocking the military's once-plump budget plans.

August 26, 2011

Chinook helicopter most susceptible to Taliban ground fire

The Army Chinook helicopter, like the one shot down Aug. 6 in Afghanistan killing all 38 onboard, is the U.S. chopper most susceptible to Taliban ground fire, according to statistics compiled by a former aviator.

August 25, 2011

SEALs were sent to stop fleeing Taliban

The top NATO commander in Afghanistan said Wednesday that the doomed Navy SEALs mission that claimed 30 American lives was intended to stop fleeing Taliban fighters and not necessarily a rescue mission as first reported.

August 10, 2011

Commandos criticize call for SEALs

Some in the special operations community are privately criticizing the wisdom of Saturday's failed rescue mission in Afghanistan, saying commanders should have sent more than the one Chinook helicopter that was shot down, killing 30 American troops, including 23 elite Navy SEALs.

August 9, 2011

Recruiters pressed to reach out to gays once ban is lifted

An underground gay group in the military wants recruiters to reach out to the gay community in the same way they target blacks, Hispanics and women.

July 28, 2011

‘Arab Spring’ dreams dying amid violence

The hopes for democracy that bloomed in the "Arab Spring" are drying up in a long, hot summer of crackdowns, civil war and continuing protests.

July 25, 2011

Liberals see opportunity for big cuts in defense

The political left is pressing the White House and Congress to inflict a wave of Pentagon budget cuts not seen since the post-Cold War 1990s.

July 18, 2011

Pakistan hesitates to eradicate U.S.-mapped militant camps

The U.S. has compiled a wide body of intelligence on the locations of militant training camps in Pakistan, but has been unable to persuade Islamabad to shut them down, current and former officials say.

July 11, 2011

Afghan pullout seen as too much, too soon

Former battlefield commanders are warning that President Obama's accelerated troop withdrawal from Afghanistan in time for the 2012 presidential election risks reversing major gains made against the Taliban.

July 5, 2011

Gates’ tenure successful, contradictory

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates leaves office Thursday popular with the liberal Washington establishment, but not so with conservatives chafed by his budget cutting and his enthusiastic support for open gays in the ranks.

June 26, 2011

Panetta to carry political baggage to the Pentagon

Defense Secretary-designate Leon E. Panetta faces an early test when he takes office July 1, as the White House pushes for deeper cuts in defense spending and congressional Republicans say no way.

June 22, 2011