That’s essentially the message Wednesday from Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii), chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee’s defense panel, to the Defense Department. In his opening statement for the panel’s markup of the Fiscal 2010 defense appropriations bill, Inouye reminded the Pentagon leadership that DOD’s track record for predicting future threats and hot spots is “not perfect.” Indeed, while Inouye’s panel supported the major program terminations put forth by the Obama Administration, including halting F-22 production—with the C-17 being one exception (see above)—Inouye stated the following: “As we go forward today killing the F-22, the Presidential helicopter, the combat search and rescue helicopter, the kinetic energy interceptor, we do so in the hope that today’s military and civilian leaders are more prescient than their predecessors in predicting our future needs,” he wrote. (Inouye statement and SAC-D markup summary)
Pentagon Releases Cost of Living, BAH Rates for 2026
Dec. 30, 2025
The Pentagon will pay cost of living allowances to 127,000 service members in the continental U.S. in 2026, an increase of 66,000 members in 2025. Airmen and Guardians across the U.S. will also receive an average increase of 4.2 percent for their Basic Housing Allowance, compared to the 5.4 percent…
