FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM
Houston, We Have a Problem. Editor Lindy Kyzer notes, “Do you ever feel like your cleared career is stagnating? Like you’re a rocket preparing for a 5-day mission, but you never get off of the launch pad? You’ve heard of failure to launch – it applies to your career as well. It’s not uncommon to find your career at a standstill. What you do while you’re waiting makes a critical difference in whether your career takes off, or stays put.”
The Rise of the Machine. Contributor Bruce Diggs advises, “Does the thought of a computer scanning your resume and verifying your credentials scare you? It shouldn’t – if you know how to hack the applicant tracking system.”
THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT
A fight for liberation – and legitimacy. CNN reports, “Iraq forces have launched a major military operation to liberate Iraq’s Anbar and Salaheddin provinces from ISIS, Iraqi state media and a key Shia militia group said Tuesday, a little more than a week after the militant group overran Anbar’s provincial capital, Ramadi.”
Old dog, old trick. A recently released Chinese military document outlines plans by the country to continue to build it’s cyber forces, as well as reinforce its borders. The Washington Post‘s Simon Denyer reports, “China said on Tuesday it plans to extend its military’s global reach to safeguard its economic and maritime interests, while insisting it did not seek confrontation with its neighbors despite “provocative actions”over disputed islands and “meddling” by the United States.”
Mission: Hollywood. An industry boot camp developed by Jon Stewart and the Daily Show hopes to lead more vets to careers in show business. The New York Times‘ Dave Phillipps reports, “Karen Kraft, a board member of the group, which tries to draw more veterans into the industry, said the small number of military veterans in show business was partly because military service supplanted the years of internships and entry-level jobs often required to establish a beachhead in the industry. The phenomenon may also be connected to a cultural divide that has kept quirky, left-leaning Hollywood and the high-and-tight world of the military from connecting.”
CONTRACT WATCH
The Long War: Acquisition Reform. National Defense‘s Sandra Erwin reports, “McCain’s move to decentralize procurement authority is likely to become the most contentious item in the SASC bill that relates to weapons acquisition reform. It has yet to get through the full Senate and then has to be reconciled with the House version of the NDAA, which includes procurement reforms that are far less controversial. After both chambers agree on a final bill, it has to be signed by the president for it to become law.”
How to Catch a Contract. The Associated Press’ Andrew DeMillo reports, “Gov. Asa Hutchinson on Thursday said he’s proposing that the state issue $87 million in bonds to help Lockheed Martin land a defense contract for its south Arkansas facility…Hutchinson’s office said the proposal includes a 25-year agreement with Lockheed Martin requiring the company to pay back the incentives if a certain number of jobs aren’t created. Hutchinson has said nearly 600 new jobs are expected to come from the project. Hutchinson spokesman J.R. Davis said the state is expected to pay off the bonds within 15 to 20 years, depending on the market.”
TECH, PRIVACY, & SECRECY
How to Shut Down a Spy Program. Government Executive’s Brendan Sasso reports, “Senators will return to Washington next Sunday for a last-minute, last-ditch effort to reach an agreement on the National Security Agency’s bulk surveillance, but the Obama administration says it’s already shutting the program down.”
Even Special Forces has Marvel Fever. The Washington Times‘ Douglas Ernst reports, “The U.S. military made the clarion call two years ago for an “Iron Man”-style suit for special operators, and the defense industry has answered the bell. Firms vying to build the Tactical Assault Light Operator’s Suit descended Thursday on MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, for the three-day Special Operations Forces Industry Conference.”
POTOMAC TWO-STEP
Does this include the ones she already deleted? The National Journal reports, “The State Department has just released two years worth of Hillary Clinton’s emails from when she was secretary of state related to Libya and the 2012 Benghazi attack. The emails, though, are a bit tricky to read over at the department’s Freedom of Information Act website. So here, for your convenience, are all of 850 pages of them.”
Washington is Ready to Spend (Your Money). The Hill’s Rebecca Shabad reports, “When House Republicans took the majority in 2011, they made it their overarching mission to rein in spending. Together with the White House, they agreed to limit spending for the next decade by the use of budget caps. Now those spending ceilings are unpopular with members of both parties. Pressure to break them is coming from all sides, and building.”
OPINIONS EVERYONE HAS
Restoring Memoriam to Memorial Day. Charles M. Blow writes in The New York Times, “This Memorial Day, as we head to the lake and the beach, grill and drink, shop and save, lay out in the sun or seek shady places, we must remain cognizant that the holiday didn’t begin as a day of celebration or commerce but one of solemnity and, indeed, memoriam.
Putin’s Defense Recruiting Problem. The Moscow Times’ Alexander Golts writes, “The authorities are resorting to increasingly draconian measures in order to round up “draft dodgers.” The State Duma is now considering a bill that would make it illegal for them to travel abroad. Meanwhile, in their rush to eliminate staffing shortages in the defense industry by redirecting at least 4,000 conscripts to that sector, officials have all but forgotten Putin’s earlier command to fully staff the army by Jan. 1, 2015.”
