Navy Mulls New Commander for Robotic Forces
Chief of Naval Operations ADM Daryl Caudle says the Navy is considering establishing a robotic autonomous systems commander to oversee the service’s unmanned capabilities.
Vets’ Jobless Rate Worsens
Unemployment rates jumped for all veterans in January, up to 4.5% from 3.8% in December. Vets in the post-9/11 generation saw unemployment rise from 5.1% to 5.8%. Military Times. The monthly report jobless rates for veterans exceeding the general population for the second time since January 2025.
Marine Corps Passes DoD Audit for 3rd Year in a Row
For the third year in a row, the US Marine Corps has passed its fiscal 2025 financial audit.
Mexican Cartels Use USA Ammo
Mexico’s defense secretary says of about 137,000 .50-caliber rounds seized from the cartels since 2012, 47% came from US-owned Lake City Army Ammunition Plant in Kansas City, MO, and were sold in gun shops in the southern United States. The factory is the largest manufacturer of rifle rounds used by the American military.
Canada Is Reconsidering F-35A Contract
Canada is reconsidering its F-35A contract with the US and looking elsewhere for its military hardware as trade tensions escalate.
US-Russia Nuclear Treaty Expires
Arms control treaties involving the US and Russia deals began after the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis. As of Feb. 5, 2026, no nuclear arms control treaties remain between the two nations. The treaty set limits on the type and number of nuclear weapons the nations could acquire.
US Builds Up Forces in the Middle East
An F/A-18E Super Hornet, attached to Strike Fighter Squadron 151, launches Jan. 30 from the flight deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea. (US Central Command photo) Morning Coffee is a robust blend of links to news around the internet concerning the Naval Air Station Patuxent River economic community. The opinions expressed here do not reflect opinions of the Leader’s owners or staff. The US military buildup of warships and fighter planes near Iran mirrors the assets that the US has in the Caribbean, reports The Hill, as President Donald Trump weighs strikes against the Islamic Republic….
US Sued for Wrongful Deaths
Families of two Trinidadian nationals killed in a Trump administration boat strike last October sued the federal government, calling the attack a war crime and part of an “unprecedented and manifestly unlawful US military campaign.”
Trump: ‘Discombobulator’ Mystery Weapon Used in Raid
President Donald Trump said a secret weapon was a key part of Operation Absolute Resolve, the strike to capture former Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro. Trump said the mystery weapon, which he called “The Discombobulator,” “made [enemy] equipment not work” during the Jan. 3 raid in Caracas.
FY26 Budget Proposal Exceeds Pentagon Request
A bipartisan compromise to fund the federal government ahead of the Jan. 30 shutdown deadline would boost defense funding to more than $839 billion, which includes $972 million for the Navy’s next-generation F/A-XX fighter and $3 billion for the Air Force’s F-47.
