DOD Intel Gets Formal Direction: Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has approved a detailed set of guidelines for the undersecretary for intelligence, a post created in 2003 and headed by Rummyite Stephen Cambone. The 16-page directive specifies that Cambone is empowered to exercise Rumsfeld’s “authority, direction, and control” over defense intelligence agencies and is DOD’s “primary representative” to the Director of National Intelligence and the Intelligence Community in general. The USD(I) gets to “identify” candidates to serve as directors of DIA, NGA, NSA, and, yes, the NRO. (You may remember that Ronald Sega is the first Air Force Undersecretary to not also hold title as NRO director.) Among a list of “relationships” in the new directive is one for the USD(I) to “work closely” with the DOD Executive Agent for Space (Sega).
USAF to Cut F-35 Buy in Future Years Defense Plan
May 14, 2021
The Air Force wants to scale back buys of the F-35 over the next five years, hoping to get sustainment costs down and to wait for the more capable Block 4 version, according to talking points prepared for Chief of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. The reduced buy will…