It was my pleasure to let trans troops speak about their experiences of being discharged in their own words.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered the military to take steps to encourage troops to consider being part of the agencies that handle immigration enforcement and border security though a new policy unveiled Thursday. Story by @ktoropin.bsky.social

"Pentagon Encourages Troops to Join Immigration Enforcement, Border Security Job Training Program In a memo made public Thursday, Hegseth ordered the Pentagon to "prioritize & broadly advertise" opportunities [for] troops who are nearing separation or retirement" From @ktoropin.bsky.social

Fort Bragg soldiers who cheered Trump’s political attacks (and jeered the press) were checked for allegiance, appearance via @stevenbeynon.bsky.social @ktoropin.bsky.social @militarydotcom.bsky.social www.military.com/daily-news/2...

A battalion of active-duty Marines -- around 700 troops -- based out of Twentynine Palms, California, received deployment orders to Los Angeles on Monday. Story by @ktoropin.bsky.social, @stevenbeynon.bsky.social and @dflawrence.bsky.social

The ship is named after a gay rights icon. One official told me that the timing of the decision - amid Pride Month - is not an accident.

The USNS Harvey Milk will be renamed on the orders of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. Story by @ktoropin.bsky.social

In a move that pushes the boundaries of Constitutional prohibition against a state religion, Hegseth hosted an evangelical prayer service in the middle of the day at the Pentagon in which a pastor praised President Donald Trump as "sovereignly appointed." Story by @ktoropin.bsky.social

ICYMI: A Congressional probe into the safety of the V-22 Osprey following multiple deadly crashes has stalled for nearly a year. A Gold Star widow tells @militarydotcom.bsky.social she is “beyond disappointed” by this. More from me and @ktoropin.bsky.social here: www.military.com/daily-news/2...

Excellent points by @ktoropin.bsky.social! “More than a month after announcing a… bombing campaign against Houthi… in Yemen, (DOD) has offered little information and… refusing to answer even basic questions on what U.S. forces have accomplished … or whether troops have been under fire or injured.”

Big one for military folks ... Hegseth's Pentagon looking to hand on-base grocery stores and shops designed to save service members and their families money to the private sector. Story by @ktoropin.bsky.social + @tomnovelly.bsky.social

It was a treat to join @wardcarroll.bsky.social and chat about the Navy’s latest efforts to cut costs while battling drones in the Red Sea

"How are soldiers supposed to interpret this?" an Army brigade commander said. "It's a cartoonish lapse in security." Story by @stevenbeynon.bsky.social, @ktoropin.bsky.social, @dflawrence.bsky.social + @kheel.bsky.social

Had the pleasure of speaking with @ktoropin.bsky.social for this latest @militarydotcom.bsky.social article on Kingsley Wilson. BLUF: she’s a white nationalist.

NEW from me and @ktoropin.bsky.social: Ethics experts raise concerns about Trump’s pick to lead the Joint Chiefs given his role with a Kushner investment firm. Also, the officer’s VMI classmates worry that Trump may try and put the general in a precarious position. www.military.com/daily-news/2...

In the last month the Defense Secretary has fired the only two female four-stars, the top rank for military officers. @ktoropin.bsky.social and @stevenbeynon.bsky.social on how women in uniform are reacting to the loss of women at the top.

The firing of Brown is going to get most of the attention, but the firings of the JAGs might be more significant in some ways. They're responsible for ensuring the military follows the law. - @ktoropin.bsky.social and @tomnovelly.bsky.social with the news www.military.com/daily-news/2...

It was a pleasure to chat with @thebrianlehrershow.bsky.social on our newsroom’s reporting over the impact of Trump’s DEI bans on the military!

The Secretary of Defense appears to have posted a document on X that shows he owes more than $33,000 in taxes following an audit. Aside from his calls to defy the IRS, this raises a myriad of questions from the quality of the vetting that was done to his vulnerability to bribes.

NEW from @militarydotcom.bsky.social - We spent all week trying to figure out what's going on with Sec Hegseth and his $137K house repairs Seems the DoD doesn't want to offer details They did confirm he'll pay rent w/@stevenbeynon.bsky.social, @kheel.bsky.social www.military.com/daily-news/2...

We're going to keep asking until we get some actual answers. - @ktoropin.bsky.social @stevenbeynon.bsky.social @kheel.bsky.social

Jack McCain, one of the board members (Naval Academy) impacted reacts to his seeming ouster on Twitter/X -

BREAKING: President Trump says he is dismissing the boards of all the service academies. In the last days of his last term, Trump packed the boards with loyalists like Kellyanne Conway and now-AG Pam Bondi. Biden removed them when he got into office.

🚨BREAKING: US IndoPacific Command says that an aircraft crash in the Philippines has claimed the life of a U.S. servicemember and three contractors.

One reason so many people are so unclear on what’s happening is the hesitation to deliver a more general theory of the case. Go ahead, break out the big type

We @militarydotcom.bsky.social still have a desk at the Pentagon and I assure everyone, we have every intent to use it to continue to do good journalism, threat of expulsion be damned.

Military.com reached out to nearly a dozen current and retired general officers for comment on Trump's retaliation against Milley. None would speak even under the condition their names be withheld from publication. Story by @ktoropin.bsky.social and @stevenbeynon.bsky.social

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Friday that "all options will be on the table" when asked by former colleagues on the "Fox & Friends" TV show whether the military is now permitted to strike within Mexico. Story by @dflawrence.bsky.social and @ktoropin.bsky.social

Independent watchdogs at the Defense Department and Department of Veterans Affairs appeared Monday to be among the estimated 18 inspectors general fired by President Donald Trump on Friday. Story by @patriciakime.bsky.social and @ktoropin.bsky.social

The military's hurry to eliminate various programs led to confusion, with unrelated policies canceled and uncertainty over what programs were still in effect. Story by @ktoropin.bsky.social, @dflawrence.bsky.social, @tomnovelly.bsky.social, @stevenbeynon.bsky.social and @patriciakime.bsky.social

A defense official confirms to me - "Mr. Robert G. Salesses was sworn in at 1201 to serve as the Acting Secretary of Defense today at the Pentagon." Salesses was a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Defense Continuity and Mission Assurance

Will Troops Pardoned for Jan. 6 Have a Place in the Military? They Already Do. The military is leaving open the possibility of active-duty troops serving or continuing to serve if they are pardoned by Trump. Story by @ktoropin.bsky.social, @dflawrence.bsky.social and @tomnovelly.bsky.social

NEW: @potusbsky.bsky.social has announced that he is naming the next two Ford-class aircraft carriers after former Pres. Bill Clinton and former Pres. George W. Bush. The future USS William J. Clinton will be CVN 82 and the future USS George W. Bush will be CVN 83

Seems noteworthy that Katie Miller, former comms director for Mike Pence and wife of Stephen Miller, isn't calling Gen. Mark Milley a traitor to the United States. She's accusing him of being a traitor to Donald Trump.

Gen. Milley’s portrait now hangs in the Pentagon’s Joint Chiefs hallway. Two details that jump out immediately - the US constitution book and the folded Ukraine map.

NEW: The Deputy Pentagon spox, Sabrina Singh says that the DoD — famously a planning organization — doesn’t have any plans to take Greenland by force. “I'm not aware of any plans to do that,” Singh says.

Really!?👀

Read the coverage that @stevenbeynon.bsky.social and I wrote about these notes and other issues going on in Livelsberger's life in the days leading up to his dramatic suicide. www.military.com/daily-news/2...

The FBI overseeing the investigation said that "although this incident is more public and more sensational than usual, it ultimately appears to be a tragic case of suicide involving a heavily decorated combat veteran who is struggling with PTSD and other issues."

The Las Vegas Metro PD is sharing some details from the notes that Livelsberger had on his phone. They say they were "varying on the spectrum in terms of political grievances, issues,...domestic issues, societal issues, a variety of other things including personal challenges as well."

NEW: Pentagon spox Sabrina Singh, asked about Jabbar and Livelsberger, says that “at this moment, I'm not tracking that they had an overlap at any time.” This comes after speculation that they may have served together either at Ft. Liberty or Alaska; they deployed to Afghanistan at the same time

A solid 🧵 that adds some much needed context to ProPublica’s reporting…

NEW: The Army has released the awards for Livensberger and Jabbar Livensberger's awards are impressive & consistent with someone who served in special forces and saw combat 5 Bronze Stars, including 1 with a Valor device Army Commendation with Valor CIB, Special Forces tab

The Las Vegas Metro PD just had a press conference to update on the Cybertruck explosion. Some details learned: Livensberger's military ID was found As were a pistol and rifle He shot himself in the head prior to detonation Police are still waiting on DNA for formal ID

I, and I suspect a shockingly large number of other army vets, have also been to Fort Liberty (formerly Bragg) despite never being stationed there. It's a big ass base. And there are a LOT of reasons to end up there. Weird thing to focus on.

Livelsberger's nearly 20-year military career began in 2006 when he enlisted directly into the Green Berets as a Special Forces communications specialist. Story by @stevenbeynon.bsky.social and @ktoropin.bsky.social

Details on military service of New Orleans attacker from @ktoropin.bsky.social - we're continuing to dig on this, and on the Las Vegas explosion.

Some new details on Jabbar via FBI: -Posted 5 videos to his FB account on the morning of Jan 1 -he had joined ISIS before this summer -he originally planned to harm his family and friends but was concerned that news headlines would not focus on the ‘war between the believers and the disbelievers'

We did some amazing work this year!

There are a lot of days that being a reporter sucks. But occasionally, someone send you an email like this and its amazing how much it can lift one's spirits.