FROM THE DESK OF CLEARANCEJOBS.COM
Veteran’s Preference. “Veterans’ Preference can place veterans higher on a list of applicants when applying for a federal government job in the competitive or excepted service. The Veterans Employment Opportunities Act allows certain veterans to get preferential hiring treatment in the form of additional points.”
Foreign Preference. “Foreign Preference is an issue whenever a person acts in a way that indicates a possible preference for a foreign country over the United States. Such actions raise questions about a person’s loyalty and allegiance, and how the person would behave if faced with a conflict between the interests of the United States and the interests of a foreign person, organization, or country.”
THE FORCE AND THE FIGHT
US Spec Ops in Syria. “Just days after the U.S. military and an alliance of Kurdish and Arab groups announced the beginning of their offensive to retake Raqqa, the Islamic State’s de facto capital in Syria, images have emerged of what appear to be U.S. Special Operations forces fighting near the front lines. The pictures, as distributed by Agence France Presse, indicate that the troops were identified as American by the group they are supporting, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).” (Washington Post)
The fight for Fallujah. “Iraqi forces battling their way into Fallujah repelled a four-hour attack by the Islamic State group in the city’s south on Tuesday, a day after first moving into the southern edges of the militant-held city with the help of U.S.-led coalition airstrikes. The attack started at dawn in Fallujah’s Nuaimiya area where Iraqi troops captured almost 85 percent of the ground the previous day . . . .” (AP) See also, “Iraqi army storms to edge of ISIS-held Fallujah,” “The Long And Bloody History Of Fallujah Is About To Get Even Bloodier” and “Iraqi Forces in Fallujah Repel IS Attack in City’s South.”
Iran’s Taliban. “While many of the details concerning Mansour’s travels remain murky, his presence inside Iranian territory shortly before his death isn’t surprising. Iran has a long history of backing the Taliban’s insurgency against US and allied forces in Afghanistan. Indeed, the relationship between the two former foes is one of the most misunderstood and oft-overlooked aspects of the 9/11 wars.” (The Long War Journal)
Remembering Memorial Day. “Who are we remembering? You’d think that is an easy question to answer, but it isn’t. There’s an official definition of Memorial Day, and then there’s the way American citizens actually celebrate it. The two don’t always mesh. Memorial Day, to the US government, is the time to remember those who died while serving in the military. . . . The melding of regional remembrance into a national one was a gradual process.” (The Christian Science Monitor)
CINC’s last Memorial Day. “Here, at Arlington, the deafening sounds of combat have given way to the silence of these sacred hills. The chaos and confusion of battle has yielded to perfect, precise rows of peace. The Americans who rest here, and their families — the best of us, those from whom we asked everything — ask of us today only one thing in return: that we remember them.” (White House)
Trimming Pentagon senior staff. “The Defense Department intends to reach its self-inflicted 25 percent cuts to headquarters staff without forcing out many employees . . . . Instead, the department will rely on relocating employees and attrition measures to cut nearly 1,600 positions. The changes will save Defense $1.9 billion by 2020.” (Defense One)
CONTRACT WATCH
BAE wins Solid State Phased Array Radar Systems (SSPARS) contract. “Radar experts at BAE Systems will maintain, upgrade, and operate a global distributed radar network in place to provide missile defense and early warning of enemy ballistic missile launches and potential threats in space. Officials of the U.S. Air Force 21st Contracting Squadron at Peterson Air Force Base, Colo., announced a $49.6 million contract Thursday to the BAE Systems Technology Solutions & Services segment in Rockville, Md., to manage, operate, maintain and logistically support the Solid State Phased Array Radar Systems (SSPARS).” (Military & Aerospace Electronics)
Boeing KC-46 Pegasus stuck in the stable. “Boeing’s KC-46 tanker program will miss a major contractual deadline to deliver 18 ready-to-go aircraft to the US Air Force next year. Due to ongoing issues with the KC-46’s refueling systems, Boeing will not be able to deliver the 18 certified tankers to the Air Force as planned by August 2017, a major contractual obligation known as Required Assets Available, or RAA.” (Defense News)
TECH, PRIVACY, & SECRECY
Snowden as Eric Holder’s public servant. “The former US attorney general Eric Holder has said the National Security Agency whistleblower Edward Snowden performed a ‘public service’ by starting a debate over government surveillance techniques. . . . ‘We can certainly argue about the way in which Snowden did what he did, but I think that he actually performed a public service by raising the debate that we engaged in and by the changes that we made,’ Holder said . . . .”
CIA’s presidential preps. “After the political convention confetti is swept away, a more sobering tradition of the presidential election begins: The regular, top-secret intelligence briefings for Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, the likely Democratic nominee. Started by President Harry S. Truman, the briefings are designed to get the candidates, before they walk into the Oval Office, up to speed on problems around the globe.” (AP)
DARPA’s Experimental Spaceplane XS-1. “The Experimental Spaceplane (XS-1) project aims to build a reusable space plane capable of flying ten times in ten days at a cost of less than $5 million per flight. The XS-1 would be used as a cheap way to quickly place satellites in orbit without the costly safety checks between flights required by current, non-reusable spacecraft. Three groups are involved in DARPA’s design efforts for the XS-1.” (Defence Talk)
DOD Component Insider Threat Records System. “A review of the 2013 Washington Navy Yard shootings found the department still lacked ‘a centralized hub’ to obtain a holistic view into potential threats . . . . Now, the Pentagon is establishing a team of ‘cross-functional experts’ trained in cybersecurity, privacy, law enforcement, intelligence and psychology — aided by the new workflow technology — to help fill that gap . . . .” (Nextgov)
POTOMAC TWO-STEP
Play nice. “Ted Cruz’s associates insist he’s returning to the Senate as the same uncompromising, hell-bent conservative he’s always been. But one thing is different, and it’s glaring: The senator who made enemies with fellow Republican senators and bragged about it to voters now wants to play nice — or at least his version of nice — with his colleagues.” (Politico)
Hit the books. “Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell offered some pointers for Donald Trump’s presidential campaign. Among them? McConnell wishes Trump would take a more “studious approach.’ ‘I think that winning the White House is about more than just entertaining a large audience’ . . . . I think the American people would also like to see him fill in the blanks.’ McConnell suggested that Trump speak more from written remarks and that he give more details on his policy positions.” (Talking Points Memo)
OPINIONS EVERYONE HAS
Spec Ops strategies in Syria. “To increase the effectiveness of operations in the Manbij pocket, the United States should consider restarting a train-and-equip program, designed to fit a narrow mission set: relaying coordinates to the coalition for more effective targeting in the area to take Raqqa. This program would have to first focus on defeating ISIL positions near Azaz and Marea, before beginning to push the group further east.” (War on the Rocks)
Common interview questions demystified. “Going on a job interview can make you feel like you’re back in school taking an exam. Instead of the ‘test’ having one clear and right answer, however, responding to questions feels like hopeful guesses mixed with uncomfortable posturing. We talked to six hiring experts to find out which questions trip up most job candidates, and the better answers that could win you the job . . . .” (Fast Company)
Putin’s May 2012 policy review. “Putin has fallen back on the May 2012 decrees as an alternative measurement of success. One that he can make look good on paper. The price of complacency, however, is blindness to constructive feedback. Russia will wake up one day and discover that its public institutions and economy have yet again fallen behind parts of the developing world. The fixation on the May 2012 decrees helps explain why.” (Reuters)
