Ten Democratic Senators led by Presidential-hopeful Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts penned a letter to leaders of the Senate Budget Committee to protest the 2.2 percent military pay raise included in President Bush’s 2007 defense budget proposal. They say it is the smallest since 1994. They wrote: “Such a paltry increase neglects the value of their service and the very real challenges of recruiting and retaining an all-volunteer military in time of war.”
The use of a military counter-drone laser on the southwest border this week—which prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to abruptly close the airspace over El Paso, Texas—will be a “case study” on the complex web of authorities needed to employ such weapons near civilian areas and the consequences of agencies…

