Edward: Welcome to the MIL News Weekly for 17-23 August 2025, your essential
guide to the latest news impacting the military and veteran community.
Whether you're currently serving in uniform, a military retiree, a veteran,
or a family member, this is your source for the critical updates you need to know.
Each week, we cut through the noise to bring you the most important developments
from the Pentagon, Capitol Hill, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Weâll cover everything from new policies and pay raises affecting
active and reserve forces, to changes in healthcare and benefits for
retirees, and the latest on VA services and legislation for our veterans.
Let's get you informed.
Hereâs whatâs happened this past week.
Issues That Affect Active and Reserve Military Personnel
Homeland Operations and Policy Directives
The use of military forces for domestic law enforcement became a central focus of
the administration's policy, alongside a rapid series of executive actions designed
to reshape the culture and composition of the federal and military workforce.
The deployment of National Guard forces in the nation's
capital expanded significantly.
More than 700 additional Guard members from West Virginia, South
Carolina, and Ohio were ordered to deploy to Washington, D.C.,
joining an existing force of approximately 2,000 troops.
This operation, branded as the "D.C.
Safe and Beautiful Task Force," is part of a stated mission to crack down on
crime and homelessness in the city.
On August 20, Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of Defense Pete
Hegseth visited troops stationed at Union Station to demonstrate
high-level support for the mission.
As part of the operation, the administration has armed the troops
for patrols and taken the extraordinary step of federalizing the D.C.
Metropolitan Police Department for a 30-day period.
The administration has claimed the deployment has resulted in a
"miracle" reduction in crime, a statement that contrasts with Justice
Department data showing that violent crime in the city was already on a
downward trend through 2024 and 2025.
This action is not an isolated event but follows a pattern established with
a similar deployment in Los Angeles and is being presented as a model for other
Democratic-led cities, with Chicago frequently cited as the next target.
The convergence of these deployments with a new executive order clarifying
the military's role in "homeland defense" and the creation of a new Mexican Border
Defense Medal suggests a strategic effort to normalize the use of military
forces for domestic law enforcement.
This represents a fundamental alteration of the traditional civil-military
relationship in the United States, moving beyond the Guard's typical
role in disaster response and into the realm of active, armed policing.
The policy has generated significant controversy and protests, with critics
raising legal and constitutional questions under the Posse Comitatus
Act, which historically limits the use of the military for domestic policing.
In parallel with the domestic deployments, the administration issued several new
executive orders and policy changes that directly affect the force.
One executive order directs the Pentagon to allow service members
who were discharged for refusing the COVID-19 vaccine to return to
service with full reinstatement of rank, benefits, and back pay.
Another sweeping order eliminates all Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
(DEI) initiatives across the federal government and military, immediately
abolishing DEI offices and banning race- and sex-based hiring preferences.
Furthermore, the Department of the Air Force issued new guidance on August
12, 2025, that revokes Temporary Early Retirement Authority (TERA) for
transgender personnel and implements new, more restrictive separation policies.
Advocacy groups have condemned these changes as "cruel, punitive,
vindictive, and in many places illegal".
On the southern border, the administration has declared a national
emergency, formally clarifying the military's role in protecting U.S.
territorial integrity and opening volunteer details for DoD civilians
to support border operations.
Finally, the U.S.
Space Force issued a new instruction, SPFI 36-2903, on August 14, 2025,
providing updated standards for dress and personal appearance for all Guardians.
The rapid succession of these orders targeting DEI, transgender service, and
vaccine mandates represents a systematic effort to reverse the social and personnel
policies of the previous administration.
The speed and scope of these changes indicate they are a top-down political
priority, likely creating significant disruption and uncertainty within
the services as commanders and personnel offices work to implement
the new directives, potentially impacting morale and unit cohesion.
Global Force Posture and Readiness
U.S.
forces participated in several major training exercises to enhance
joint and multinational readiness.
In Alaska, Exercise Northern Edge 2025 kicked off on August
17, involving over 6,400 service members, 100 aircraft, and seven U.S.
and Canadian vessels.
The exercise, led by U.S.
Indo-Pacific Command, focuses on high-end, multi-domain warfighting
and is running concurrently with Arctic Edge 2025, a NORAD and U.S.
Northern Command exercise focused on homeland defense.
The simultaneous execution of an exercise focused on power projection
(Northern Edge) and one on homeland defense (Arctic Edge) demonstrates a
strategic fusion of DoD priorities.
It treats the Arctic not merely as a separate theater but as a critical
nexus for both defending the U.S.
homeland and projecting power into the Indo-Pacific, reflecting a
recognition that any conflict in that region would require securing Alaska
as a vital staging and logistics hub.
Issues That Affect Retired Military Personnel
Updates to Benefits and Financial Administration
The Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) is implementing a
significant change to the payment process for the Survivor Benefit Plan
(SBP) for a specific group of retirees.
Starting in August 2025, retirees who pay their SBP premiums via direct remittance
will no longer be billed by the U.S.
Treasury's Centralized Receivables Service.
Instead, they will be billed directly by DFAS and must submit their payments
through the federal government's Pay.gov
portal.
This change, originally scheduled for June 2025, primarily affects retirees who do
not receive sufficient retired pay from DFAS to cover their monthly SBP premiums.
This group includes "Gray Area" reservists who are not yet drawing retired pay and
retirees who have a large portion of their military retired pay waived to receive
non-taxable VA disability compensation.
DFAS has indicated that alternative payment options will be available,
including requesting that SBP premiums be deducted from VA disability payments.
Veteran Leadership and Continued Service
In a landmark event for the veteran community, Carol Whitmore was elected as
the new National Commander-in-Chief of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) on August
13, 2025, during the organization's 126th National Convention in Columbus, Ohio.
Commander Whitmore, a 36-year U.S.
Army veteran who earned her VFW eligibility serving in Iraq, is the
first woman and the first Iowan to lead the 125-year-old organization.
In her acceptance speech, she underscored her identity as a combat veteran first,
stating, "I may be the first veteran to have been elected VFW commander-in-chief
while wearing a dress...
but I will not be the last".
The election of Commander Whitmore is a watershed moment, signaling a
significant cultural evolution within one of the nation's most influential
legacy veterans service organizations.
For 125 years, the VFW's leadership has been exclusively male,
reflecting the historical composition of America's combat forces.
Her election is a direct result of the changing nature of warfare and the veteran
population over the past two decades, which has seen women widely deployed
in combat and combat-support roles.
This move acknowledges their equal status as combat veterans and could
significantly enhance the VFW's appeal to the fastest-growing demographic
of new veteransâwomenâthereby helping to ensure the organization's
relevance for the next generation.
Issues That Affect Veterans Affairs
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is navigating a period of profound
transformation, marked by a major administrative overhaul and workforce
reduction on one hand, and the legislative mandate to implement one of the most
significant expansions of veteran benefits in recent history on the other.
VA Modernization and Workforce Strategy
The VA announced that it is on pace to reduce its total staff by nearly 30,000
employees by the end of Fiscal Year 2025, which concludes on September 30, 2025.
This significant reduction is being achieved through a combination of
normal attrition, Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA), a
Deferred Resignation Program (DRP), and the ongoing federal hiring freeze.
According to the VA, these measures have eliminated the need for a large-scale,
department-wide Reduction in Force (RIF).
The department's workforce decreased from 484,000 on January 1, 2025,
to 467,000 by June 1, with an additional 12,000 employees expected
to depart by the end of September.
VA Secretary Doug Collins stated that "a department-wide RIF is off the
table" and assured that safeguards are in place to prevent any negative
impact on veteran care, noting that over 350,000 mission-critical positions
are exempt from the hiring freeze.
As part of this effort to streamline operations, the VA is also pursuing
several major administrative centralization initiatives.
These include consolidating duplicative support functions such as police, IT,
and procurement across the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Veterans
Benefits Administration (VBA), and National Cemetery Administration (NCA).
The department also plans to merge its 274 separate call centers into a single
modernized system and move all VA Medical Centers onto a unified payroll system to
reduce bureaucracy and improve efficiency.
Analysis of Congressional Legislation and Oversight
This week saw the enactment of major legislation affecting veterans and
federal employees, alongside the introduction of new bills aimed at
protecting the veteran workforce.
Public Law: The PRO Veterans Act of 2025 (S.
423)
This bill, sponsored by Senator Dan Sullivan of Alaska, became Public
Law No: 119-33 on August 14, 2025.
A link to the bill can be found âin the transcript:
Effects on Federal Employees and Oversight: This law directly impacts
the compensation structure for the VA's top leadership by prohibiting
the agency from providing critical skill incentive payments (bonuses)
to Senior Executive Service (SES) employees at the VA central office.
It also increases congressional oversight by requiring the VA to provide
quarterly budget briefings to Congress, including detailed plans to mitigate
any projected shortfalls, holding senior VA leadership more directly
accountable for fiscal management.
Pending Legislation of Note
Several other bills are currently under consideration:
S.
1068: This untitled Senate bill seeks to provide significant job
protections for veterans, military spouses, caregivers, and reservists
employed in the federal civil service.
It would nullify any removal, demotion, or suspension of such individuals that
occurred after January 20, 2025, and would require future adverse actions to be
referred to the Merit Systems Protection Board or the Office of Special Counsel.
This bill appears to be a direct response to the administration's reinstatement
of "Schedule F," a policy making it easier to replace career civil
servants with political appointees.
The bill's extraordinary retroactive provision suggests a deep concern
within a faction of Congress that the administration's efforts to reshape the
federal workforce could disproportionately harm the veteran community.
A link to the bill can be found in the transcript:
H.R.
740, the Veterans' ACCESS Act of 2025: An introduced bill from the
House Veterans' Affairs Committee.
A link to the bill can be found âin the transcript:
H.R.
552, the Veterans Collaboration Act: This bill would require the
VA to implement a pilot program to foster partnerships between the VA,
VSOs, and law schools to provide pro bono legal services to veterans.
A link to the bill can be found âin the transcript:
Issues That Affect Disabled Veterans
Programs and events this week continued to focus on the specific needs of
disabled veterans, particularly in the areas of mental health, homelessness
prevention, and adaptive sports.
The Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs held a hearing on August 22
titled "Separating Fact from Fiction: Exploring Alternative Therapies for
Veterans' Mental Health," a topic of critical importance to veterans
with PTSD and other service-connected mental health conditions.
The VA continued to promote its key support programs.
The FINVET program offers financial resources and counseling, directly
addressing the established link between financial instability and
increased suicide risk among veterans.
The HUD-VA Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program remains a cornerstone of the
effort to end veteran homelessness, providing housing vouchers along with
wraparound case management and healthcare services to help disabled and unhoused
veterans achieve long-term stability.
In the realm of adaptive sports, the National Veterans Summer Sports
Clinic is taking place from August 23-30, 2025, offering opportunities
for rehabilitation and recreation.
The application window for the 2026 National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports
Clinic, a premier adaptive skiing and sports event, opened on August 1, 2025.
And that's your Weekly Briefing.
Staying on top of these changes is key to navigating your career,
your retirement, and your benefits.
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Weâll be back next week with another roundup of the news that matters most
to the military and veteran community.