Weekly Defense News.
Just like old times.
Weekly Defense News. Just like old times.
Edition #
9
Published
Dec. 20, 2025
Will Oliver/EPA
Senate Republicans push for progress on funding package this week, with another shutdown possible in new year

A new "minibus" package would be made up of five appropriations bills, including funding through September for the Department of Defense; Labor, Health and Human Services and Education; Transportation, Housing and Urban Development; Commerce, Justice and Science; and Interior and Environment.

Funding
CBS
Read

Dig Deeper

After a Senate vote to extend expiring healthcare subsidies failed, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are bracing for another shutdown, The Hill reported this week. Politico reported the House passed a healthcare bill that does not address the subsidies issue, which was at the center of the last shutdown.

Trump signs $1tn annual US defense bill without fanfare

The bill, which passed 77-20 from the Senate earlier this week, includes requirements for the new "portfolio acquisition executive model" and prioritizes commercial solutions that make it easier for businesses to work with the department.

Legislation
The Guardian
Army identifies 2 Iowa National Guardsmen killed in Syria attack

Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard and Sgt. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar were killed on Dec. 13 after being ambushed by a gunman believed to be part of ISIS. President Trump promised a “very serious retaliation.”

Military Operations
Task & Purpose
Hegseth is planning massive overhaul of US military commands and shrink presence in Europe: report

The move, intended to speed decision-making, would align with the recent reorientation toward the Western Hemisphere and mark one of the most significant changes to defense posture in decades.

Policy
The Independent
Christopher Estrada/U.S. Army
Hybrid manufacturing: The case for agile factories

Part two of the Cogs of War series we highlighted last week that explores the emerging consensus that factories will need to merge old and new processes.

Additive Manufacturing
War on the Rocks
Trump targets defense giants' shareholder payouts as cost overruns mount, sources say

A forthcoming executive order would "limit dividends, buybacks and executive pay for defense contractors whose projects are over-budget and delayed."

Contracting
Reuters
Why energy dominance is now a national security imperative

In addition to cutting the previous focus on climate change, the administration's new global strategy makes clear it sees energy security as indistinguishable from national security.

Strategy
Real Clear Defense
Lamontagne nominated for vice chief, Guardsman for top JAG, new ANG director picked

A slew of leadership nominations were announced, including Air Mobility Command chief Gen. John Lamontagne, who would fill the No. 2 job in the Air Force left vacant since February.

Leadership
Air & Space Forces Magazine
Navy’s new Rapid Capabilities Office pursues disruption, with caution

The NRCO's new chief, Vice Adm. Seiko Okano, told reporters the Navy is open for business and serious about having speed as its cornerstone.

Tech
Defense Scoop
Trump targets Maduro as Western Hemisphere becomes ‘first line of defense’ in new strategy

The Trump administration has moved its hemispheric security doctrine into full force in Venezuela, ordering a sweeping naval blockade on sanctioned oil tankers and labeling Nicolás Maduro’s government a Foreign Terrorist Organization.

Strategy
Fox News
Last-minute push to reauthorize Technology Modernization Fund in NDAA falls flat

The TMF bill, which would extend the program to 2032, has not made it out of the Oversight Committee. The current funds were set to expire Dec. 12.

Legislation
Fed Scoop
 Tomas Martinez, Unsplash+
US government launches ‘Tech Force’ to hire AI talent

The program is designed to address a technical and early career talent gap across the government, according to OPM. CNN said the administration plans to hire an initial cohort of 1,000 early career software engineers, data scientists, project managers and AI experts to be placed across government agencies for the two-year program.

Government Workforce
CNN

Dig Deeper

Federal News Network reports that as more agencies jump on board the AI train, they will have to add new clauses and acquisition requirements to their contracts starting March 11, per a new OMB memo that gives agencies 90 days to update their existing policies.

Why you should read The MC Post every Saturday morning.

We’re bringing back the familiar comfort of unfolding the weekend newspaper and catching up on the headlines, without the tacky popups, scammy ads, or bait-and-switch paywalls that you’ve come to know and hate. In a world racing toward AI-generated content, the MC Post is curated by people for people. Brought to you by Mission Cultivate—the free networking platform for defense and national security pros.

Feature Commentaries

Modern warfare demands warfighter-driven innovation

As military leadership seems to be homing in on speed as the primary strategy to win, Hamutal Meridor, CEO of Kela Systems, argues veteran-owned companies need to be at the center of any commercial-first approach.

Innovation
Washington Examiner
The year AI moves from pilots to practice: Three predictions for government in 2026

Bob Stevens, vice president of Americas and public sector at GitLab, thinks soon everyone will be a developer as AI is democratizing software development across government.

AI
Federal News Network
SBIR reform should build launchpads, not lifelines

Brian Miller, senior vice president at BMNT, argues SBIR reform should be judged by one question: Does it turn grants into a launchpad toward real markets and customers, or lock firms into permanent, grant-dependent life support?

Small Business
The National Interest
Hon. Mike Dodd on advancing critical technologies for the American warfighter

The assistant secretary of war for critical technologies and acting deputy of DIU talks about entrepreneurship and the newly announced focus areas for the department.

Podcast
Video
Source:
Building the Base
Pryzm's quest to help DOW pass an audit

CEO an co-founder Nick LaRovere maps the path to overhauling defense procurement and tells how four college friends turned procurement frustrations into a venture-backed defense tech platform.

Podcast
Video
Source:
Crossing the Valley

Editor's Notes

If you’re just joining us, or have joined since I first jotted down in the editor’s notes what we’re doing here, let me take this “quieter” week to recap. This publication is, not at all surprisingly based on its name and the multiple references throughout each edition, part of Mission Cultivate—the free, discreet defense and national security networking platform. With MC, we have tapped into a community of leaders across government and industry who want a more secure space to connect and collaborate. What started as a few ‘weekend reads’ within MC’s news community grew into The MC Post. Our goal is to give the defense industrial base a cheat sheet of the major updates each week because we know being informed matters to your mission or your bottom line. In doing so, we get to highlight the amazing journalism and commentary happening around this space while also putting forward some voices exclusively right here!

If you enjoy reading TMCP, please subscribe and recommend it to your colleagues. It is growing and adapting based on your interests and feedback. Then you can head over to Mission Cultivate where the conversation continues. There you can comment on the articles, see what others are reading, and even tell me if you think I’m way off base with my selections. I’m not, but you can tell me anyway.

We’ll be off the next two weekends, because TMCP is put together by real people, not AI. And real people want to spend their holidays with other real people. Obviously, I won’t leave you hanging, so expect at least one good read or podcast in our out-of-office edition you can chew on over the break.

In the New Year, we already know we’ll come back to a chaotic news environment. There will be appropriations to discuss against a rapidly dwindling shot clock of government funding that expires at the end of January. Amid that conversation, hopefully the funding for SBIR/STTR doesn’t get buried, as there are many businesses—for better or worse, depending on where you stand in that particular debate—whose livelihoods are dependent on a system currently in limbo. Count getting our act together on that one as my Christmas wish.

Stay with us, as we have a lot planned for this publication coming soon, including original content, guest editors and more. Sound interesting? Send us a note at news@missioncultivate.com.

Thanks for reading,

| Beau Downey, Editor


The views represented in this commentary are my own and do not constitute endorsement by the Department of Defense or the U.S. Government.

More In Depth

Why DOGE failed to slash spending

After a chaotic year of policy changes and program cuts, it's hard to say what the savings of Elon Musk's DOGE effort was. But one thing is clearly quantifiable—government spending overall this year rose by more than $275 billion.

Policy
The Dispatch
A strategic self-infliction: Why the Air Force’s transformation is failing to deliver readiness

Jeremiah Castillo calls out structural failures undermining the Air Force's force generation model, including recent changes like the decision to reverse the 'wing A-staff' concept.

Readiness
Self-published
The good, bad and really weird AI provisions in the annual US defense policy bill

See a breakdown of how Congress is grappling with the significant risks of AI, including what the author thinks the department is overlooking (at its own peril).

AI
Tech Policy Press

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US military demos new stealth drone tracking tech

AI-powered C-UAS is a counter-drone system, deployable on fast raiding and special forces craft, that uses AI to fuse data from multiple independent sensors, and integrates customizable sensor platforms.

UAS
NextGen Defense
Space RCO solicitation for agile space effort held up by SBIR/STTR funding issue

Space Force RCO Director Kelly Hammett called the SBIR renewal debate a "contentious issue" that is also impacting contracts for threat warning radar satellite payloads.

Funding
Via Satellite
Pentagon AI chief departing to work on Golden Dome effort

Principal Deputy CDAO Andrew Mapes will lead the AI hub in an acting capacity until a new CDAO is hired as the previous head, Douglas Matty, exits to lead the administration's new defense program.

Leadership
Defense Scoop
NATO chooses 150 firms for 2026 fast-track defense tech challenge

Under the initiative starting in January next year, participants will receive contractual funding and access to DIANA’s network of 16 accelerator sites and more than 200 test centers across NATO’s 32 member states.

Innovation
Defense Post
Next presidential jet will arrive a bit earlier than projected, Air Force says

A program that has consistently been plagued by delays finally pushes the timeline sooner, after having previously projected 2028 or 2029 as the delivery of the new Air Force One planes.

Industry
Defense One
Troops will receive $1,776 checks before Christmas, Trump announces

President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he would be issuing checks to members of the United States military for $1,776 in honor of the country’s founding, calling the payment the “Warrior Dividend.”

Military Life
CNN
As US ramps up munitions production, South Korea and Australia want in

The two countries are offering to set up operations in the U.S. as well as a pathway for U.S. operations to set up facilities overseas—something they say would shore up supply chain resilience.

Supply Chain
Defense News
U.S. forces intercept cargo ship carrying missile components bound for Iran

U.S. special operations forces raided a cargo ship in the Indian Ocean last month, intercepting components reportedly linked to Iran’s missile program, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Military Operations
SOFX
DoD to industry: Start planning now for 2027 deadline banning Chinese parts

“If you start to ask for a waiver starting ‘27 that's going to be a painful process for everyone. We'd rather you go ahead and start early,” said Michael Cadenazzi, the sssistant secretary of defense for industrial base policy.

Contracting
Breaking Defense

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