Trump sails to Newport News Presented by Northrop Grumman

With Zach Montellaro, Jeremy Herb, Connor O’Brien, and Ellen Mitchell

DRIVING THE DEFENSE DAY — TRUMP SAILS TO NEWPORT NEWS, Va., where he’ll deliver a speech aboard the Navy’s newest aircraft carrier, the Gerald R. Ford. The president will visit Newport News Shipbuilding-- a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, the nation’s largest shipbuilder.


Fresh off his first address to a joint session of Congress, Trump is looking to promote his request for a $54 billion boost in defense spending for the next fiscal year, the first volley in his goal to raise a 350-ship Navy, now at 275 ships.

BORN AGAIN, report our friends at POLITICO Pro’s Budget and Appropriations Brief: “The fiscal 2017 defense spending bill is expected to be resurrected sometime in the next 24 hours — rejiggered, with bicameral blessing and likely matching the latest National Defense Authorization Act budget topline. The House Appropriations Committee confirms summary and text is likely to be posted Thursday. And while the legislation will technically have a new HR number thanks to a new Congress, it is essentially a conference report. Expect to see that measure hit the House floor next week.”

— MIRRORING THE NDAA, via our colleague Connor O’Brien: House Armed Services Chairman Mac Thornberry predicts the newfangled fiscal 2017 defense spending measure is on par with NDAA conference report levels. "There's always some relatively minor differences on what we fund," Thornberry says. "So, I think the priority is let's get this appropriation bill done, understanding that there's still a supplemental to come. And we've got to do [fiscal 2018] in the future."

SESSIONS FAILS TO DISCLOSE RUSSIA MEETINGS, The Washington Post reports: “Then-Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) spoke twice last year with Russia’s ambassador to the United States, Justice Department officials said, encounters he did not disclose when asked about possible contacts between members of President Trump’s campaign and representatives of Moscow during Sessions’s confirmation hearing to become attorney general.

“One of the meetings was a private conversation between Sessions and Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak that took place in September in the senator’s office, at the height of what U.S. intelligence officials say was a Russian cyber campaign to upend the U.S. presidential race.”

“The previously undisclosed discussions could fuel new congressional calls for the appointment of a special counsel to investigate Russia’s alleged role in the 2016 presidential election. As attorney general, Sessions oversees the Justice Department and the FBI, which have been leading investigations into Russian meddling and any links to Trump’s associates. He has so far resisted calls to recuse himself.”

— DEMOCRATS POUNCE, POLITICO’s Rebecca Morin, Josh Meyer, and Austin Wright write: “Top congressional Democrats called on Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign Wednesday after revelations that he had met with the Russian ambassador in the months before the election — meetings that Sessions did not disclose during his confirmation hearings.

“House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) led the effort late on Wednesday night, accusing Sessions of ‘lying under oath’ during confirmation proceedings about his contacts with the Russians.

"’The attorney general must resign,’ Pelosi wrote in a statement. ‘There must be an independent, bipartisan, outside commission to investigate the Trump political, personal and financial connections to the Russians.’ Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.), the ranking member on the House oversight committee, also called on Sessions to resign, as did Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.).”

As news of the meetings broke, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said in a CNN town hall if the FBI determines that Trump's campaign illegally coordinated with Russia, the attorney general should recuse himself from making the decision whether to pursue prosecutions.

Sessions, appointed by the president, "cannot make this decision," Graham said.

HAPPY THURSDAY AND WELCOME TO MORNING DEFENSE, where we're always on the lookout for tips, pitches and feedback. Email us at [email protected], and follow on Twitter @greg_hellman, @morningdefense and @politicopro.

POLITICO Event — Future of the Wireless World: The Move to 5G — American firms are on the cusp of launching the first commercially-available production of ultra-fast mobile broadband that will transform the economy and spur innovation. How can policymakers enable this revolution while preserving competition and innovation? Speakers include FCC Commissioner Mike O'Rielly and more. District Architecture Center — 421 7th St. NW; Tuesday, March 7 — Doors at 8:00 a.m. RSVP: here.

HAPPENING TODAY — AEI TACKLES ‘READINESS CRISIS’: The American Enterprise Institute hosts a discussion on “addressing the military readiness crisis” this morning, featuring House Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee Chairman Joe Wilson (R-S.C.).

HOUSE INTEL LEADERS AGREE ON RUSSIA PROBE’S SCOPE, POLITICO’s Austin Wright reports: “The leaders of the House Intelligence Committee have agreed on the ‘scope’ of their investigation into Russia's meddling in the presidential election — and it will include looking into possible contacts between Moscow and the Trump campaign. The committee announced the agreement Wednesday, saying in a statement that Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) and ranking Democrat Adam Schiff of California had approved a six-page classified document laying out the scope of their probe.”

— OBAMA ADMINISTRATION LEAVES SOME BREADCRUMBS, via The New York Times: “In the Obama administration’s last days, some White House officials scrambled to spread information about Russian efforts to undermine the presidential election — and about possible contacts between associates of President-elect Donald J. Trump and Russians — across the government. Former American officials say they had two aims: to ensure that such meddling isn’t duplicated in future American or European elections, and to leave a clear trail of intelligence for government investigators.”

TRUMP MULLS NORTH KOREA REGIME CHANGE, writes The Wall Street Journal: “An internal White House review of strategy on North Korea includes the possibility of military force or regime change to blunt the country’s nuclear-weapons threat, people familiar with the process said, a prospect that has some U.S. allies in the region on edge.

“While President Donald Trump has taken steps to reassure allies that he won’t abandon agreements that have underpinned decades of U.S. policy on Asia, his pledge that Pyongyang would be stopped from ever testing an intercontinental ballistic missile—coupled with the two-week-old strategy review—has some leaders bracing for a shift in American policy.”

McMASTER PUTS HIS STAMP ON NSC, our colleagues Eliana Johnson, Nahal Toosi and Kenneth P. Vogel report: “President Donald Trump’s new national security adviser, Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, is taking steps to streamline the National Security Council—starting by eliminating positions created by his short-lived predecessor Michael Flynn, according to two people familiar with the moves.

“McMaster did away this week with deputy assistant spots, one overseeing the National Security Council’s regional desks and another overseeing transnational issues, according to a senior White House aide. The move comes less than two weeks into McMaster’s tenure. It’s a sign that, in a White House where a handful of the president’s political aides hold considerable sway over matters both domestic and foreign, McMaster has some power – and autonomy — to reshape his organization the way he sees fit.”

DEMS LASER IN ON YEMEN RAID, Jeremy reports: “Democrats on Wednesday said it was appropriate for President Donald Trump to honor the widow of the SEAL who was killed in last month — but the tribute does not erase lingering questions surrounding the Yemen raid.

“‘I was proud to be part of the standing ovation in tribute to her courage and strength and her sacrifice, particularly as the dad of a naval officer who’s currently deployed. But it’s no substitute for an investigation,’ said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.).

“Trump's honoring of Navy SEAL Ryan Owens and his widow, Carryn Owens, in a powerful moment during his address to Congress, drew an extended standing ovation.

“Still, the reaction, Democrats said, does not negate the calls from Owens' father for a review into the decision-making process that led to Trump's approval of the raid five days into his presidency.”

SERVICE SECTOR BRACES FOR A SHAKEUP, our colleague Ellen Mitchell writes: “President Donald Trump’s much-anticipated pitch to expand the Army and Navy and invest more in the nuclear arsenal and missile defenses is also expected to spell a big boost for defense services like equipment maintenance and training.

“But at the same time it could lead to cuts in other areas of the vast services market that accounts for more than half of what the Pentagon buys each year and its own advisers say is ripe with waste and fraud.”

WAR REPORT — RUSSIA MISTAKENLY HITS U.S.-BACKED SYRIANS, via The New York Times: “Russian aircraft mistakenly bombed Syrian fighters who were being trained by the United States, the commander of the American-led operation in Iraq and Syria said on Wednesday. American advisers were about three miles away when the Russian strike occurred.

“The episode pointed to the risk of unintended clashes among the myriad forces operating on a fluid battlefield in Syria, as the American command looks toward the fight to retake Raqqa, the Islamic State’s de facto capital in the country.”

— SENIOR AL QAEDA LEADER KILLED BY U.S. DRONE STRIKE IN SYRIA, the NYT reports: “A senior official of Al Qaeda was killed on Sunday in Syria by a United States drone strike, an American official said on Wednesday. The terrorist leader, Abu al-Khayr al-Masri, 59, was the second-ranking official after Ayman al-Zawahri and was a son-in-law to Al Qaeda’s founder, Osama bin Laden.”

— AND SOON WITHOUT TRUMP’S OK? The White House is considering delegating more authority to the Pentagon to greenlight anti-terrorist operations, according to The Daily Beast: “It's part of an effort to step up the war on the so-called Islamic State. President Donald Trump has signaled that he wants his defense secretary, retired Marine Gen. Jim Mattis, to have a freer hand to launch time-sensitive missions quickly, ending what U.S. officials say could be a long approval process under President Barack Obama that critics claimed stalled some missions by hours or days.”

INDUSTRY INTEL — LOCKHEED NABS NEW F-35 CONTRACT, via Defense News: “Lockheed Martin raked in a $1 billion contract Tuesday for F-35 sustainment and logistics support for U.S. military and international customers.

“According to the contract announcement, Lockheed will provide sustainment services including ground maintenance, depot activation, supply chain management, and initial pilot and maintainer training. It also covers work on the F-35’s logistics platform, the Autonomic Logistics Information System, which guides maintainers through repair processes and helps manage spare parts.”

MAKING MOVES — KERRY LANDS AT CARNEGIE: Former Secretary of State John Kerry is joining the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace as a visiting distinguished statesman, focusing on conflict resolution and global environmental challenges.

— AND CLAPPER HEADS BACK TO SCHOOL: Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper is joining Harvard Kennedy School’s Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs as a non-resident senior fellow. Clapper is also writing a book on the history of U.S. intelligence over his five decades in the business, focusing on his six and half years as DNI.

SPEED READ

— Devices seized in Yemen raid offer some clues to al-Qaida tactics: NYT

— South Korea worries about Chinese backlash to THAAD deployment: Reuters

— The Kurds will remain part of the U.S.-backed operations to take Raqqa from ISIS: The Washington Post

— A pair of attacks by the Taliban in Kabul kill at least 16: The Washington Post

— U.N. says the Syrian government intentionally bombed a humanitarian convoy: Reuters

— Iraqi forces block ISIS counter-attack in Mosul: Reuters

— Turkey moves to launch its own space agency: Defense News

— Why it matters that McMaster continues to wear his Army uniform: Military Times

— Future Vertical Lift faces budget challenges in fiscal year 2018, the Pentagon says: POLITICO Pro

— Documenting one family fleeing ISIS: NYT

— ISIS escalates intimidation tactics in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula: The Wall Street Journal

— ISIS video threatens China with homegrown fighters: WSJ

— Trump has given terrorist groups a propaganda victory: POLITICO Magazine

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