Situation Report

Panetta orders investigation into all DoD childcare centers

Is Hagel getting swiftboated on Israel?; State takes a hit on Benghazi from independent panel; The Kagans under fire; Jim Amos asks Syrian rebels to move their fight to the Pacific, and more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | DECEMBER 19, 2012

Pentagon: not so fast on the Vickers story

The Army’s plan to create platoons of Jason Bournes; Panetta talks strategy and sequester today; NBC’s Engel released; Mini red velvet cupcakes at State’s party, and more.

DECEMBER 18, 2012

Cabinet announcements: a big week for the Pentagon?

Who is Hagel?; Benghazi review to Congress; Still deadly: landmines in Afghanistan; “Hell no!” Why Panetta will never stop cursing, and more.

DECEMBER 17, 2012

Patriots to Turkey

Panetta visits troops 60 miles from Syria; An unfortunate incident at Karzai’s palace; Lessons learned from Paula and Petraeus; Hitting the nail on the ‘head,’ and more.

DECEMBER 14, 2012

Suicide bomber attacks Kandahar air base hours after Panetta leaves

Hagel to the Pentagon? Karzai to DC; Is the U.S. mil a victim of its own success in Afghanistan; Amos to have the talk with his generals; Why a head is called a head, and more.

DECEMBER 13, 2012

SecDef in Kabul

Larry Nicholson: tough love for the Afghans; Panetta’s wake-up call from the North Koreans; Don’t ask a soldier where the ‘head’ is, and more.

DECEMBER 12, 2012

Panetta in Kuwait, says intel on chemical weapons in Syria has “leveled off”

Afghanistan progress still a mixed bag; Vince Brooks to the Pacific; Defense bill requires notification of “successful penetration,” and more.

DECEMBER 11, 2012

John Campbell to be nom’ed to be Army vice

Panetta on Afghanistan rescue; Why the Corps isn’t dining out; Global Trends report out this AM: what’s a conflict game changer; A Marine lieutenant colonel may need his major insignias back, and more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | DECEMBER 10, 2012

How does the Pentagon stop Syria?

Panetta bids Johnson adieu; Austin to Central Command; The Pakistanis and the fertilizer problem; Those crazies at the Naval Academy, and more.

DECEMBER 7, 2012

Ash Carter to DOE?

The Pentagon is trimming the brass; Did the Chinese target Mullen? The Air Force’s search for Farah Fawcett posters; Psst: the push for fewer secrets in government, and more.

DECEMBER 6, 2012

Why JIEDDO is not only about Afghanistan

The 15 people who don’t want to kick the can down the road on debt, SecDef Watch: what’s not completely crazy, and more.

DECEMBER 5, 2012

Why “No Drama Obama” might like Joe Dunford

McCain made similar points as Rice on Benghazi; Why “strategic communications” just became “communications synchronization” at the Pentagon; Petraeus as “Fat Elvis”? And more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | DECEMBER 4, 2012

A novel idea: the U.S. should buy Syria’s WMDs

Afghanistan, open for business; Panetta watch continues; Cyber-missions coming for the services, and more.

DECEMBER 3, 2012

Why DOD investigators are finding more wrongdoing among senior officers

Pentagon's Jeh Johnson to AG?; Release the trial balloons: Flournoy as SecArmy; PAO John Kirby on the military and the media, why close relationships matter, and more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | NOVEMBER 30, 2012

Why John Allen’s investigation could take months

The firing at the Naval Postgraduate School: it wasn’t all about the barbecue and lawn chairs; The drop in the Pentagon’s R&D budget, Are Micah Zenko’s criticisms beyond the pale? And more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | NOVEMBER 29, 2012

News flash: the Pentagon’s in fiscal hot water

Role reversal: Panetta plays it different than he did in 1991; Why the SecDef may stay longer; Women want combat roles; and a little more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | NOVEMBER 28, 2012

The Pentagon’s sequestration bubbas sit on their hands

A “fundamentalist con artist” cancels visit to Pentagon; Mattis, off the record?; Where a general shops for shoes; Is Tom Ricks rude? And more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | NOVEMBER 27, 2012

WH might leave 10k in Afghanistan

The push for diplomacy on Iran; McRaven on FP’s Top Global Thinkers list and a little more.

NOVEMBER 26, 2012

Allen returns to Afghanistan

The big step for mining in Afghanistan, Panetta: al-Qaida remains a cancer, Why Mullen had a chef, and more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | NOVEMBER 21, 2012

How the Pentagon is cutting a rug in Afghanistan

Marines on standby in the Med; Dempsey is concerned about the scandal; Commanders behaving badly, The Navy gets a Biden, and more.

NOVEMBER 20, 2012

Good intel: get out of buildings, onto the streets

The trouble with the Asia pivot; Cyber vulnerabilities at DOE; Allen’s hope for a quick investigation, and more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | NOVEMBER 19, 2012

Dempsey models Afghan Hands program for Asia

The Navy’s Greenert talks rebalancing, Panetta: back to school for ethics training, What a Marine staples to his desk and more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | NOVEMBER 16, 2012

Tension over the Allen issue in Asia

Dunford to testify, Panetta to visit shrine, Services would get cut under a new blueprint for defense spending, McChrystal’s book out in January, and more.

NOVEMBER 15, 2012

What the volume of Allen e-mails say

Ward gets a demotion, Asia Foundation: new optimism in Afghanistan, The shallow bench for NATO if Allen’s promotion falters, What is a social liaison, anyway? and more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | NOVEMBER 14, 2012

More girl trouble: sex scandal expands to include ISAF commander Allen

Allen’s nomination on hold, WaPo: Kerry considered for SecDef job, and more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | NOVEMBER 13, 2012

New scrutiny on the F.B.I. investigation of Petraeus

Paula Broadwell’s singular focus; The biographer’s athletic reputation, Mansoor: Petraeus will rise again, and more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | NOVEMBER 12, 2012

U.S. has “strong concerns” about Iranian warplane shooting at drone

Stavridis cleared of any wrongdoing, Service associations to Congress: get off your bum, the Washington parlor game of Obama’s cabinet continues, and more.

BY GORDON LUBOLD | NOVEMBER 9, 2012