Blog post

IAVA Daily Brief 5.27.10
Posted by Blake Henderson on May 27 2010

Here are some of today's top stories and happenings at IAVA.  Prefer to receive real-time updates about major stories and legislation that IAVA is tracking?  Follow us on Twitter @IAVAPressRoom. MUST READS 1) New national security strategy sticks to military might, values other types of power as well   The Obama administration's new outline of national security goals says the U.S. must galvanize support abroad to tackle global troubles. The national security document says the U.S. should maintain its military advantage over the rest of the world while prizing other kinds of power. The strategy places focus on homegrown extremists and steps back from the "war on terror" terminology.   2) Biden says U.S. will leave Iraq on time   The drawdown, which is being managed by Vice President Biden, will reduce troop levels to 50,000 this summer, even if no new Iraqi government takes shape.   3) Iraq vet told to take down American flag or face eviction   A veteran of Iraq is being told to take down his American flag or face eviction at an apartment complex in Oshkosh, WI.  He and his wife were granted a reprieve so that they could keep the flag up until Tuesday.   AFGHANISTAN

• In Kabul, the main U.S. prison in Afghanistan is less than a week away from an event many thought would never occur at the long-secretive holding tank for captured militants: a trial.
• A car bomb exploded outside a small NATO military base in Kandahar, wounding two Afghans and destroying several cars.  It was the latest in a string of bold attacks on high-profile NATO targets in the past two weeks, following a Taliban announcement of a spring offensive against alliance and Afghan forces.

IRAQ

• Iraq's election commission sent the final results of the March 7 elections to the Supreme Court for certification, which could clear a major obstacle to forming the new government after weeks of delay.
• International investors are taking notice of the opportunities Iraq offers, as it is a country under reconstruction, with huge oil reserves and an educated middle class.  Hotels are being pinpointed as golden opportunities.

MILITARY AFFAIRS

• 3,000 to 4,000 veterans who have run into legal issues - many with Green Cards - are facing deportation by the federal government.
• Defense Secretary Robert Gates has directed the military services to adopt a set of counterinsurgency tools modeled after ones instituted in Afghanistan by Gen. Stanley McChrystal.

INSIDE WASHINGTON

• Claiming it is buried in a bad bill, one of the staunchest supporters of ending the "disability tax" on retirees eligible for both military and veterans benefits said he will not vote for a House initiative to help retirees who were unable to complete 20 years of service because of a service-connected disability.
• In a dinner at the U.S. Naval Observatory honoring wounded warriors, Vice President Joe Biden said that, "We have one truly sacred obligation: to prepare and equip those in harm's way and to care for them when they come home."

A wide-range of views, positions, and publications are represented in these articles. These views, positions and publications are not endorsed by nor do they necessarily represent the views of IAVA.