The U.S. Capitol seen through a window of the House Canon building.
House approves $825B for Pentagon as lawmakers emphasize need to improve pay for troops

The House on Friday approved $825 billion in defense spending for the remainder of fiscal 2024 that funds pay increases for troops and compels the Pentagon to address the military’s recruiting crisis.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., shakes hands with Bernie Bluestein while presenting the Congressional Gold Medal at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on March 21, 2024, during a ceremony recognizing the service of World War II Ghost Army veterans. Honored at the event along with Bluestein were Seymour Nussenbaum, seated in the wheelchair at left, and John Christman, standing second from left.
‘Master storytellers’: WWII’s Ghost Army receives long-awaited Congressional Gold Medal

Eighty years after they used elaborate trickery to deceive enemy armies about the true size and location of American forces, the surviving members of World War II’s Ghost Army soaked up the appreciation of a nation on Thursday as they received the Congressional Gold Medal.

U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Sarabrian Jackson, 6th Maintenance Group quality assurance chief inspector, unloads turkeys during a Nourish the Service event at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, Nov. 17, 2023. Nourish the Service is a Blue Star Families supported annual event dedicated to bringing installation personnel donations during the holiday season. This year, the event provided free turkeys, vegetables, books and handwritten cards. Over the course of six hours, more than 275 service members and 75 volunteers attended the event. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Zachary Foster)
Senior enlisted leaders push expansion of basic needs allowance to help address food insecurity in military

Senior enlisted leaders threw their support behind a proposal to widen military family eligibility for a basic needs allowance on Wednesday, urging lawmakers to approve the measure to help lessen food insecurity.

Retired Gen. Mark Milley, left, and retired Gen. Kenneth McKenzie speak to the House Foreign Affairs Committee at the Capitol in Washington on March 19, 2024.
‘Fundamental mistake’: Top former generals say Afghanistan evacuation order came too late

Retired Gens. Mark A. Milley and Kenneth “Frank” McKenzie blamed delayed decision-making by the State Department for the rushed and violent airlift out of Kabul’s airport as the Taliban took over the country.

National Police patrol the area near the empty National Penitentiary after a small fire inside the jail in downtown Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Haiti, Thursday, March 14, 2024. This is the same prison that armed gangs stormed late March 2 and hundreds of inmates escaped. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)
US naval base at Guantanamo Bay prepared for Haitians fleeing gang violence, SOUTHCOM general says

The U.S. military has prepared its naval station in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for a possible influx of Haitian migrants even as gang violence in the country has subsided in recent days, a top operational commander said Thursday.

‘It’s gotten worse’: Army vet fighting in Ukraine presses Congress for more weapons

Army veteran Ryan O’Leary spoke about his battleground experience after taking part in a rally in support of Ukraine aid alongside congressional Democrats, who staged a news conference in conjunction with the nonprofit group VoteVets.

Members of the General Security Unit of the National Palace, USGPN, set up a security perimeter around one of the three downtown stations after police fought off an attack by gangs the day before, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Saturday, March 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Odelyn Joseph)
‘Trying to get our daddy home’: US has no immediate plans to rescue Americans, including Marine vet, trapped in Haiti

Defense officials said Tuesday that the U.S. does not plan to deploy troops to Haiti and has no immediate plans to rescue Americans trapped by gang violence in the country, including a former Marine who served in Vietnam.

Marines zero their rifles in the Marine Corps Championships hosted by the Weapons Training Battalion at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va., in April 2023.
Marine Corps budget proposal seeks $53.7 billion for modernization efforts, housing improvements

The Marine Corps has made a $53.7 billion budget request to support its ongoing transformation into a more modernized force and improve living conditions for Marines.

The U.S. Capitol building is seen on June 30, 2023, in Washington, D.C.
Senate passes VA funding bill that strengthens gun rights for veterans, averts shutdown

The Senate passed a long-delayed, full-year spending bill for the Department of Veterans Affairs on Friday that strengthens gun rights for certain veterans and averts a partial government shutdown.

The U.S. Capitol building is seen through a window in the Senate Russell office building in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, Feb. 8, 2024.
House approves long-delayed funding for VA and military construction as shutdown nears

The House approved a $460 billion spending package on Wednesday to fund the Department of Veterans Affairs and five other federal agencies through the fall, signing off on a long overdue budget for veteran health programs and military construction.