Ron Paul

Army Reservist In Hot Water Over Ron Paul Speech

Nick R. Martin | January 4, 2012, 4:58PM

An Afghanistan war veteran is in trouble for giving a political speech while in uniform at a caucus night rally with Ron Paul on Tuesday in Iowa.

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FBI

FBI Calling In West Point To Help Crackdown On Anti-Muslim Counterterrorism Training

Ryan J. Reilly | November 3, 2011, 2:40PM

In an effort to stomp out anti-Muslim counterterrorism training at the the FBI, the bureau is calling in reinforcements.

Spencer Ackerman reports over at Wired that the FBI is turning to the Army's Combating Terrorism Center at West Point, a request that "represents a frank admission from the FBI that it requires outside help to reform."

The bureau, Ackerman reports, reached out to Bill Braniff, a retired Army captain who directs Practitioner Education at West Point. He "spent much of October in meetings at Bureau Headquarters in Washington D.C. designing what a source familiar with the process describes as 'guidelines for objectionable material' to exclude from agent training." He continues:

In its eight-year history, the CTC has built a reputation as a non-ideological haven for rigorous, data-driven counterterrorism research. It compiled perhaps the most thorough profile ever of the foreign fighters that flocked to Iraq, based on captured military documents. Its monthly newsletter, the CTC Sentinel, is widely read in counterterrorism circles. Not only does CTC teach the Army's cadets at West Point, who will have to distinguish between Muslim civilians and insurgents in warzones, it consults for state and local police -- and the FBI.

An FBI official told TPM that the Army's role in the review is a bit "overstated." In a statement provided by the bureau, the FBI said a "core review team included FBI and non-FBI personnel with academic training in areas of Islamic studies and Arab history" which "established guidelines to provide concrete enterprise-wide guidance on the training of counterterrorism and countering violent extremism topics."

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Alaska

Officials: Soldier Arrested In Espionage Probe Didn't Have Very High Clearance

Jillian Rayfield | November 2, 2011, 4:27PM

Military Policeman And Espionage Suspect William Millay

Military officials say that a 22-year old soldier arrested in an espionage probe did not have access to sensitive intelligence, according to NBC News.

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Don't Ask Don't Tell

Mullen: DADT Repeal Is 'First And Foremost A Matter Of Integrity'

Jillian Rayfield | September 20, 2011, 2:52PM

Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mike Mullen Discussing the End of Don't Ask, Don't Tell.

The repeal of the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy that banned gays and lesbians from serving openly in the armed forces went into effect Tuesday, which Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta called "an historic day for the Pentagon and the nation."

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Pentagon

Military Personnel Say Pentagon Ignores Sexual Assaults, Harassment (VIDEO)

Ryan J. Reilly | February 16, 2011, 11:57AM

Sec. of Defense Robert Gates

Veterans and active-duty service members filed a federal lawsuit this week alleging that the Pentagon has turned a blind eye to a hostile military culture that has resulted in sexual harassment and rapes.

The lawsuit, filed by civil litigator Susan Burke in Virginia, notes that there's been an increase in reports of sexual abuse in the military and that Pentagon leadership hasn't done enough about it.

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Don't Ask Don't Tell

Gov't Files To Suspend 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Appeal

Ryan J. Reilly | December 31, 2010, 10:03AM

A crowd protests "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" outside the White House

The Justice Department asked a federal judge this week to suspend an appeal of the Log Cabin Republicans' federal lawsuit against "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," which was recently repealed by Congress.

Justice Department attorneys argued that the court should "suspend the briefing schedule and hold the case in abeyance to allow that process to continue to completion."

A federal judge had ruled in September that DADT was unconstitutional and issued an injunction banning enforcement of the law, a ruling DOJ appealed.

President Obama signed the repeal into law earlier this month, and has said he expects repeal to be implemented in a matter of months, not years.

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Terrence Lakin

'Birther' Army Doctor Pleads Guilty On One Count At Court Martial

Ryan J. Reilly | December 14, 2010, 12:35PM

Lt. Col. Terrence Lakin, an Army doctor who refused to deploy to Afghanistan because he questioned whether President Barack Obama was born in the U.S., pleaded guilty to one of two charges against him at a court martial proceeding on Tuesday.

Lakin pleaded guilty to a charge that included not meeting with a superior when ordered to do so and not reporting for duty at Fort Campbell, reported The Republic. He'll face up to 18 months in prison and dismissal from the Army, the newspaper reported.

Lakin pleaded not guilty on another charge that he missed a flight he was required to be on, and his court-martial at Fort Meade in Maryland is continuing on that count.

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Defense Department

The Army Wants To Put Smartphones On The Battlefield

Rachel Slajda | December 9, 2010, 8:51AM

A promo photo from the Army's app contest

Smartphones may soon be as ubiquitous in Army units stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan as they are on the streets of New York, as the Army works on a program to bring smartphones to soldiers on the ground.

The Army believes that smartphones -- and certain apps developed by and for the Army -- could be a great boon to soldiers on the ground. And the service sees it as inevitable.

"Taking smart-phone technology and bringing them to the battlefield is probably -- I shouldn't say this -- but it is something that we need to do," said Tony Fuiza, a researcher on the program, on a recent call with military bloggers.

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Terrence Lakin

Army Dashes Birther Hopes For Obama Testimony At Court Martial

Justin Elliott | June 4, 2010, 12:41PM

Lt. Col. Terrence Lakin

In a judicial smackdown reminiscent of the Orly Taitz saga, the investigating officer in the court martial of Birther Army doctor Terrence Lakin has denied Lakin's request to compel President Obama to testify, robbing the Birthers of what they hoped would be a golden opportunity to try the "eligibility" question in a high-stakes trial setting.

Lakin is being court martialed for refusing to follow orders to deploy to Afghanistan on the grounds that Obama is not eligible to be president and that therefore, in Lakin's view, all military orders are illegitimate.

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Terrence Lakin

Anderson Cooper Spars With Birther Army Doc And His Attorney (VIDEO)

Justin Elliott | May 10, 2010, 9:18AM

Attorney Paul Rolf Jensen and Lt. Col. Terrence Lakin

Lt. Col. Terrence Lakin, the Birther Army doctor being court martialed for refusing to follow orders, went on CNN with his attorney Friday night and argued with Anderson Cooper for eight minutes.

Most of the time was spent with Cooper posing questions to Lakin and Attorney Paul Jensen interrupting to debunk the anti-Birther premises of the questions.

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Terrence Lakin

Court Martial Charges Brought Against Birther Army Doc

Justin Elliott | April 23, 2010, 9:21AM

Lt. Col. Terrence Lakin

Formal court martial charges have been brought against Lt. Col. Terrence Lakin, the Army doctor who believes President Obama may not be a natural born citizen, for failing to follow orders, the military said today.

Lakin was charged Thursday "with one specification of a violation of Article 87, Missing Movement and four specifications of a violation of Article 92 (three specifications of Failure to Obey a Lawful Order, and one Specification of Dereliction of Duty)," said Chuck Dasey, spokesman at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, where Lakin is assigned.

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Trijicon

Despite Extensive Online Discussions, Military Denies Knowledge Of Rifle Scope Bible Verses

Justin Elliott | January 18, 2010, 6:20PM

Trijicon scope's Bible verse pointed out on YouTube last year.

Responding to the revelation that rifle sights used by the military in Iraq and Afghanistan are inscribed with Bible citations, a Marine Corps spokesman told TPMmuckraker today that the branch simply didn't know about the inscriptions until inquiries were made last week.

But posts on gun enthusiast forums from as early as 2006 and Youtube videos watched thousands of times extensively discuss the Bible verses on the Trijicon rifle sights, casting doubt on the military's claim that it was unaware of what was apparently a poorly kept secret.

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