Pentagon: Climate change threatens military installations
Flooding, drought and wildfires driven by climate change pose threats to two-thirds of the U.S. military's installations, the Defense Department said in a new report required by Congress. The authors of the report, which the Pentagon delivered to Congress on Thursday, note that it probably underestimates the full extent of risk to military facilities because it only looks at likely impacts over the next two decades. The UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has said


NYTimes PodCast: A Republican Congressman From Texas Who Opposes the Wall
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/17/podcasts/the-daily/will-hurd-border-wall-trump.html As the government shutdown approaches its fifth week, a few congressional Republicans are publicly breaking from the president in his push for a border wall. We spoke with one of them. On today’s episode: Representative Will Hurd, Republican of Texas. Background reading: Mr. Hurd said he would dispense with the concrete wall or steel slats that President Trump has called for in favor of mo


Congressman Will Hurd Selected for House Appropriations Committee
WASHINGTON, DC – After a successful four years securing big wins for South and West Texans and leading many conversations in Congress on national security and technology issues, U.S. Representative Will Hurd (TX-23) was chosen by his colleagues to serve on the prestigious House Appropriations Committee.


Travis Air Force Base breaks ground on KC-46 hangars
For nearly 60 years since the arrival of the KC-135 Stratotanker, Travis Air Force base has always been home to an air-refueling squadron. That mission will continue with the new state-of-the-art refueling aircraft, the KC-46A Pegasus that is set to arrive on base in January 2023. Friday, on the site of what will become a new 174,000 square-foot maintenance hangar for the aircraft, those instrumental in securing Travis’ selection as the future home turned over a ceremonial pa


Travis breaks ground for 3-bay KC-46 hangar
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE — Travis Air Force Base took its first big step to get ready for the KC-46 Pegasus air tanker Friday amid much praise for those who lobbied to get the aircraft here. Travis, federal, state and community leaders took part in a ceremony to break ground to start construction of a $107 million hangar for the KC-46 Pegasus air tankers, which will start calling Travis home in 2023. “This is an important first step in getting the KC-46,” said Len Augustine, cha


Congress in 2019: Why the first branch should bring back earmarks
House Democrats have talked openly about bringing back earmarks at the start of the 116th Congress, and it’s great news. Earmarks—individual provisions inserted into legislation (most often) spending bills to direct benefits for specific projects in specific places—have long been a vilified legislative practice that Republicans effectively banned them at the start of the 112th Congress in 2011. But the new Democratic House is advocating for earmark reform, and we may see Cong

