Sen. Daniel Akaka (D-Hawaii), chairman of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, wants to boost the Administration’s 2008 VA budget by $2.9 billion to expand funding for veterans’ medical care. The Administration has requested $36.6 billon out of a total VA budget of $87 billion to pay for medical services. Akaka says the boost would ensure the VA can “treat all eligible veterans” and provide “resources to absorb the thousands of service members presently on medical hold” at various military medical facilities.
Concerned about how artificial intelligence might be used to generate target lists or operational plans, lawmakers want to expand limits on autonomous weapons to address mission planning and target selection. The House Armed Services Committee's version of the 2027 National Defense Authorization bill would direct the Pentagon to revise Defense…