Norquist to Be Acting DefSec After Inauguration

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David Norquist will serve as acting secretary of defense for the start of the Biden administration, reports Defense News. Mr. Norquist has been the deputy DefSec since July 31, 2019, according to his DoD bio. Mr. Norquist will take over after the inauguration and be in charge until the Senate confirms retired Army GEN Lloyd Austin for the position, reports Politico.

Acting DefSec Christopher Miller told a group of reporters traveling with him last week that he cannot wait to leave his job, reports The Washington Post.

With the Pentagon’s chief management officer role officially disestablished by Congress, Mr. Norquist has issued guidance on where the authorities and personnel associated with the CMO office will go, reports Air Force Times.

The Biden administration will look to one Trump administration holdover as a source of military continuity: GEN Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, reports Military Times.

Some low-key protests were reported across the country over the weekend in a run-up to Wednesday’s presidential inauguration, reports The Associated Press. AP also reports that the FBI is tracking an “extensive amount of concerning online chatter,” including calls for armed protests. At least 21,000 National Guard men and women — from all 50 states, three territories and the District of Columbia — will provide security support for the inauguration, reports Maryland Matters.

Inauguration Day is tomorrow, Jan. 20, a date set by law. BBC outlines the day’s activities starting with opening remarks at 11:30 am. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris will be sworn in at noon.

Outgoing President Donald Trump will hold a farewell ceremony at Joint Base Andrews before his departure from Washington, DC, reports USA Today. He will not attend Mr. Biden’s inauguration ceremony, making him the fourth outgoing president to skip the formal event, reports New York Post. Vice President Mike Pence has said he will attend the event. Joining VP Pence will be former presidents Barack Obama, Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, reports CNN.

 

 

VP Pence honored the life and career of World War II ace and US Air Force test pilot Charles E. “Chuck” Yeager at a Jan. 15 memorial service in West Virginia, reports Air Force Magazine. Mr. Pence started the service in Mr. Yeager’s home state by calling him “America’s greatest aviator” during a 15-minute address that detailed Yeager’s military career. PBS offers a video of Mr. Pence’s remarks.

A new coalition of cybersecurity and tech groups is looking to create a plan for countering the surge of ransomware attacks that plagued city governments, schools and hospitals last year, reports The Hill.

The US Marine Corps is expected to break ground on a state-of-the art, advanced wargaming center at the base in Quantico, VA, this year, reports Marine Corps Times.

Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr., 78, the longest serving state Senate president in Maryland history ― and in the US ― died Friday afternoon at his home in Chesapeake Beach following a long battle with prostate cancer, reports Maryland Matters.

General Motors unveiled a self-driving Cadillac which takes off and lands vertically and carries the passenger above the streets and through the air, reports New York Post. The single-passenger vehicle — technically, a vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) drone — will be able to travel from urban rooftop to urban rooftop at speeds up to 55 miles per hour.

Volkswagen tripled its sales of battery-only cars in 2020 as its new electric compact ID.3 came on the market ahead of new European Union limits on auto emissions, reports The Associated Press.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard conducted a drill over the weekend launching anti-warship ballistic missiles in the Indian Ocean, reports Military Times, amid heightened tensions over Tehran’s nuclear program.

President Trump has shaken up the headquarters overseeing US military operations in the Middle East and Southwest Asia, reports Military Times. On Thursday, Trump has ordered US Central Command to add Israel to the list of nations for which it has responsibility.

Military Times reports the US has met its goal of reducing the number of troops in Afghanistan and Iraq to 2,500 in each country, though the reduction in Afghanistan appears to violate a last-minute congressional prohibition.

Dr. Anthony Fauci said the US will soon begin the process of approving new COVID-19 vaccines, reports UPI. He was speaking on “Meet the Press” Sunday Morning.

Contracts:

Huntington Ingalls Industries Fleet Support Group, Newport News, Virginia, is awarded a $174,910,371 cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract to provide Navy aircraft carrier Elevator Support Unit maintenance and repair. Work will be performed aboard Navy CVNs (aircraft carrier nuclear propulsion) within the continental US; outside the continental US; and forward deployed locations according to individual task orders, and is expected to be completed by January 2026. No funds will be obligated at the time of award. Funding will be obligated on individual orders as they are issued. This contract was competitively procured and solicited via the beta.SAM.gov website. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, DC, is the contracting activity (N00024-21-D-4103).

CSRA LLC, Washington, DC, is awarded a $57,000,000 modification (P00002) to previously awarded, firm-fixed-price, cost-plus-fixed-fee, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract N61340-18-D-0002. This modification increases the ceiling to provide the Navigation Seamanship Shiphandling Trainers program, training systems and upgrades to meet fleet emergent requirements based on the Chief of Naval Operations mandated expansion in navigation related training hours and navigation related training capability at schoolhouses throughout the world. Work will be performed in Norfolk, Virginia (44%); Everett, Washington (14%); Pearl Harbor, Hawaii (14%); Yokosuka, Japan (14%); Rota, Spain (13%); San Diego, California (0.5%); and Sasebo, Japan (0.5%), and is expected to be completed in September 2022. No funds will be obligated at time of award and funds will be issued against individual orders as they are issued. The Naval Air Warfare Center, Training Systems Division, Orlando, Florida, is the contracting activity.

EG Designbuild LLC, Germantown, Maryland, is awarded a $16,239,000 firm-fixed-price task order (N69450-21-F-0872) under previously-awarded multiple-award contract N69450-19-D-0919 for construction of a Special Operations Forces watercraft maintenance facility at Naval Air Station, Key West, Florida. The task order also contains three unexercised options which, if exercised, would increase the cumulative task order value to $18,385,020. The work to be performed includes construction of a new maintenance facility for the repair of special operations forces’ hard-hulled and soft-hulled watercraft, including electrical, mechanical, plumbing and fire protection utilities. This includes demolition of the existing bunker, KW-800, currently used as a climate-controlled exercise facility by facility personnel; construction of a new vehicular entrance ramp and exit ramp to the maintenance facility; and modifications to the existing storm water permit to address the new construction. The options, if exercised, provide for a hard-hull shop, vehicular ramp and overhead cooling door, and furniture, fixtures and equipment. Three proposals were received for this task order. Work will be performed in Key West, Florida, and is expected to be completed by October 2022. Fiscal 2020 military construction (Army) funds in the amount of $16,239,000 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command, Southeast, Jacksonville, Florida, is the contracting activity.

Lockheed Martin Corp., Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co., Fort Worth, Texas, is awarded a $13,036,252 cost-plus-fixed-fee order (N00019-21-F-0227) against previously issued basic ordering agreement N00019-19-G-0008. This modification procures non-recurring site stand-up activity, capability development, information technology systems integration and associated changes to F-35 Lightning II program and industry processes as needed to allow the Defense Logistics Agency and U.S. Transportation Command to assume North American regional warehouse and global transportation and distribution product support provider responsibilities. Work will be performed in Fort Worth, Texas (63.9%); Orlando, Florida (26.6%); Bethesda, Maryland (8.5%); and Greenville, South Carolina (1%), and is expected to be completed in March 2022. Fiscal 2021 aircraft procurement (Navy) funds in the amount of $6,518,126; and fiscal 2019 aircraft procurement (Air Force) funds in the amount of $6,518,126, will be obligated at time of award, $6,518,126 of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

EC America Inc., McLean, Virginia, is awarded a $9,053,930 firm-fixed-price order (M67854-21-F-4906) against previously issued Department of Defense Enterprise Initiative blanket purchase agreement N66001-19-A-0057. This blanket purchase agreement call order provides for the renewal of Tanium brand software license subscriptions currently deployed in the Marine Corps Enterprise Network environment and associated onsite technical support in Quantico, Virginia (100%). Fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance (Marine Corps) funds in the amount of $9,053,930 will be obligated at the time of award and funds will expire Sept. 30, 2021. This was a limited-source acquisition in accordance with the policy and guidelines in the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement, Section 208.74 and the Federal Acquisition Regulation, Part 8.405-6. The Marine Corps Systems Command, Quantico, Virginia, is the contracting activity (M67854-21-F-4906).