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Pentagon officials are issuing adverse actions against a senator who participated in a viral video on "unlawful orders."
News

Hegseth moves to reduce Sen. Kelly’s military retirement pay over unlawful orders video

Sen. Mark Kelly may see his retirement pay reduced after participating in a video with other members of Congress urging troops not to obey unlawful military orders.

Image: (Original Caption) The Charleston shot was part of Operation Plumbbob and was fired from a balloon on September 28, 1957. (Photo by © CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)
History

The military once considered using balloons as nuclear weapons systems

A 1957 study looked at the possibility of an American strategic floating bomb force.

An F/A-18F Super Hornet aircraft, attached to Strike Fighter Squadron 213, launches from the flight deck of the world’s largest aircraft carrier, Ford-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), while underway in the Caribbean Sea, Dec. 28, 2025. U.S. military forces are deployed to the Caribbean in support of the U.S. Southern Command mission, Department of War-directed operations, and the president's priorities to disrupt illicit drug trafficking and protect the homeland. (U.S. Navy photo)
Americas

More than 150 fighters, bombers and other aircraft took part in Venezuela strike

The force of Navy, Air Force and Marine F-22s, F/A-18s, F-35s and drones struck several sites in Caracas as the Army captured Nicolás Maduro.

An MC-130J Commando II assigned to the 1st Special Operations Wing and U.S. Army MH-60M Black Hawks assigned to the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne) participate in a helicopter air-to-air refueling exercise near Hurlburt Field, Florida, Nov. 20, 2025. Joint exercises enable special operations forces to share distinct interservice skillsets and seamlessly operate during real-world missions. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Isabel Tanner)
Army

Delta Force, other special operations soldiers carried out Venezuela raid

President Donald Trump said no personnel were killed in the attack on Venezuela, dubbed “Operation Absolute Resolve.”

Trump Maduro
Americas

US military captures Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro after striking military sites

President Donald Trump has issued a statement saying U.S. forces have captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife.

A U.S. Coast Guard C-130 Hercules with USCG Base Honolulu, performs aerial maneuvers while performing a Search and Rescue demonstration during the 2025 Kaneohe Bay Air Show at Marine Corps Base Hawaii, Aug. 10, 2025. The Kaneohe Bay Air Show provides an opportunity to showcase the aircraft, equipment and capabilities of the armed forces in the Indo-Pacific region to the local community. The air show contained aerial performances, static displays, demonstrations and vendors, was designed to celebrate MCBH’s longstanding relationship with the local community. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Jade K. Venegas)
Coast Guard

Coast Guard halts search for survivors of US strikes on boats in the Pacific

The effort, which lasted four days, is the most extensive one conducted by the U.S. since it began attacks on alleged drug ships in September.

Image:  Soldiers assigned to 5th Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division (3rd ID), Marne Innovation Center, 3rd ID and Artificial Intelligence Integration Center, Army Futures Command, discuss a Tethered Unmanned Aircraft System with Sentinel Software at the National Training Center, Fort Irwin, California, July 18, 2024. By combining forces, the U.S. Army utilizes assets and creates technology to increase the lethality of its brigades, while also cultivating a culture of innovation. (U.S. Army photo by Spc. Rebeca Soria)
Army

Army creates new AI-focused career field for officers

The new 49B area of concentration will get its first cadre of officers who are tasked with integrating AI into logistics, robotics and combat.

Technician from Office of Naval Research (ONR) participates in freeflight after extensive testing for the Hiller Flying Platform. The platform was first flown in public in 1955. (Photo by US Navy/Getty Images)
History

When the military tried to give soldiers personal flying platforms

In the 1950s the Navy and Army worked on small VTOL machines to make troops go airborne. They worked, just not well enough.

Airman 1st Class Charles Crumlett, 335th Aircraft Maintenance Unit weapons load crew member, prepares a weapon to be loaded during the 4th Quarter Load Crew of the Quarter competition, Jan. 26, 2018, at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina. The purpose of the weapons load competition is to showcase the weapons crews highly developed skills with precise loading capabilities. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Kenneth Boyton)
Air Force

Lack of supervision contributed to Alaska airman’s death, report finds

A new Air Force review of Staff Sgt. Charles Crumlett’s death in March 2024 noted failures in supervision, communication and procedures while working on a F-22.

Image: Navy Counselor 1st Class Andrew Shipman from Beaufort, North Carolina, facilitates a mock physical fitness assessment aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) while underway in the Pacific Ocean, June 26, 2025. Fitzgerald, assigned to the Nimitz Carrier Strike Group, is underway in the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations on a scheduled deployment, demonstrating the U.S. Navy's commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Cyrus Roson) 
Fitness

Navy rolls out twice-a-year fitness tests

The new system goes into effect in the new year, with all active-duty sailors required to complete a fitness assessment every six months.

Image: The 1st Cavalry Division, Horse Cavalry Detachment poses for photos during a retirement ceremony for 1st Sgt. Brandon P. Mims, on Fort Hood, Texas, Dec. 05, 2025. The ceremony included a presentation of multiple awards, the Color Guard, a cavalry charge, and the attendance of family and friends. (U.S. Army photo by Pfc. Michelle Lessard-Terry)
Army

Army changes course, decides to keep horses at two bases

The Army previously planned to phase out its Military Working Equid program at five different bases to focus on “warfighting priorities.”

PALM BEACH, FLORIDA - DECEMBER 28: U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky following their meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club on December 28, 2025 in Palm Beach, Florida. Trump invited Zelensky to his private club to work on the U.S.-proposed peace plan to end the war in Ukraine as the conflict approaches four years since the sudden full-scale invasion by Russia on February 24, 2022. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
Americas

Trump says US took out a ‘big facility’ in Venezuela

The president would not say if the U.S. military was involved in the operation on Christmas Eve.

DAABDAMALE, PUNTLAND, SOMALIA - JANUARY 25: Soldiers with the Puntland Defense Forces walk back from a cave where Islamic State fighters lived until recently being flushed out on the frontline near Daabdamale, Puntland, Somalia on January 25, 2025. Islamic State in Somalia recruits foreign fighters and brings them into Somalia to try to gain ground in what is becoming a key nerve center for the Islamic State. (Photo by Carolyn Van Houten/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
Africa

US targets ISIS in Somalia with multiple airstrikes over four days

The wave of attacks comes as American forces bombed ISIS for the first time in Nigeria. 

Judge David O. Carter looks at the West Los Angeles Veterans Affairs campus through a chainlink fence.
Veterans

Appeals court upholds order for the VA to build 2,550 housing units in Los Angeles

The Department of Veterans Affairs "has strayed from its mission," the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found, and must build 1,800 permanent and 750 temporary housing units on its West Los Angeles campus.

A missile launches in a plume of fire from a U.S. warship as part of strikes against ISIS in Nigeria on Dec. 25, 2025.
Africa

US targets ISIS with multiple strikes in Nigeria

The Christmas day attacks in the country’s northwestern Sokoto state are the first direct strike against militants in Nigeria by the U.S.

Space Force graduation
Space Force

Space Force guardians graduate basic training in their own uniforms for the first time

“This milestone reflects more than a uniform change. It represents the strength of a shared training foundation and the future focused mission these guardians are stepping into.”

Image: Jeep: US soldiers of the 3rd Division having Christmas dinner on the hood of a jeep on the front lines, World War Two, France, December 25th 1943. (Photo by Archive Photos/Getty Images)
World War II

How US troops in World War II celebrated Christmas dinner on the front

Fighting was brutal, rationing was strict, but turkey was never in short supply.

Santa deployed to helmand afghanistan
Culture

Happy holidays from Task & Purpose

It's been quite a year, and we're glad we got to share it with you.

The Navy has released this rendering of the new battleships announced by President Donald Trump, which feature a railgun.
Navy

The Navy’s railgun may be back from the dead — for now

President Donald Trump announced that the Navy’s new “battleships” will each be armed with “state-of-the-art electric railguns.”

The vessels would allow the Marines to move small teams onto remote islands. Medium Landing Ship, or LSMs, can carry 200 Marines to shore.
Marine Corps

Marines may finally get landing ships for modern-day island hopping

The Navy plans to buy between 18 and 35 Medium Landing Ships, which each can carry more than 200 Marines ashore along with helicopters and vehicles.