Lolita Baldor

National Security/Pentagon Reporter with The Associated Press in D.C.; Granite State/Lakes Region native; Proud Michigan State Spartan; Go Sox! Go Pats!

[Greg Jaffe @GregJaffe]

Hegseth Strikes Female and Black Navy Officers From Promotion List. The result: a slate of 22 new one-star admiral nominees that bears little resemblance to the force these officers will help lead.
Of special note: The list has no women. w/ @katekelly
https://t.co/pUwRkXctH6

[Phil Stewart @phildstewart]

This is the first meeting in memory by a #SOUTHCOM commander and a Cuban military delegation at the edge of Gitmo.

[Elissa Slotkin @ElissaSlotkin]

In December, President Trump called for me to be investigated, arrested, and hanged over a 90-second video that restated existing law.

My lawyer's advice was straightforward: go quiet. Keep your head down. This will blow over.

But in this administration, the reality is that keeping your head down does not keep you safe. Staying quiet when power comes after you does not make the threat go away. It just teaches the people making the threat that it works.

When a president can call for the arrest and execution of a sitting senator for quoting the law, and the expected response is silence, that's a problem that goes way beyond me. That affects every American who works in government, every journalist, every ordinary citizen who might speak up.

A grand jury of ordinary Americans looked at this situation and said no. They understood what was at stake, and I think most Americans do.

We refuse to accept that this is the new normal.

This moment isn't really about me. When the administration is willing to go after a senator this way, it sends a message to every American who might speak up. That should concern people in both parties.

[Scott Nover @ScottNover]

Breaking: The New York Times has filed a second lawsuit against the Defense Department, this time challenging the escort requirement for journalists covering the Pentagon.

[Admiral James Stavridis, USN, Ret. @stavridisj]

I stand with David (AKA "Ed") Sanger. @SangerNYT

[Senator Mark Kelly @SenMarkKelly]

We had this conversation in a public hearing a week ago and you said it would take “years” to replenish some of these stockpiles. That’s not classified, it’s a quote from you. This war is coming at a serious cost and you and the president still haven’t explained to the American people what the goal is.

[Idrees Ali @idreesali114]

WASHINGTON, May 11 (Reuters) - Two out of three Americans think President Trump has not clearly explained why the country has gone to war with Iran, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll completed on Monday.

[Phil Stewart @phildstewart]

“The Court cannot conclude this Opinion without noting once again what this case is really about: the attempt by the Secretary of Defense to dictate the information received by the American people, to control the message so that the public hears and sees only what the Secretary and the Trump Administration want them to hear and see. The Constitution demands better. The American public demands better, too.”

https://t.co/pbP2GBePIR

[The Washington Post @washingtonpost]

Breaking news: A judge found that the Defense Department’s revised “interim” policy unconstitutionally sidestepped his earlier ruling. That ruling found that the department’s press policy violated the rights of the New York Times and one of its reporters.
https://t.co/GA2c7MiAQj

[Gordon Trowbridge @G_Trowbridge]

I was far, far from perfect in either job I held at OSD PA. But at least I never had a federal judge rule that one of my memos violated the First Amendment.

So I got that goin’ for me. https://t.co/2tlkpZGvWZ

[Lolita Baldor @lbaldor]

Hegseth loses again in court —. Federal judge finds Pentagon is violating court order to restore access to reporters
https://t.co/61o1ZHb414

[Phil Stewart @phildstewart]

@SenatorSlotkin is a former top Pentagon official who the Trump administration tried and failed to indict for urging troops not to knowingly follow illegal orders.

[Jon Gambrell | جون @jongambrellAP]

APNewsAlert: WASHINGTON (@AP) — US service member missing after #Iran shot down fighter jet has been rescued, US officials say.

[NBC News @NBCNews]

NEW: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has taken steps to block or delay promotions for more than a dozen Black and female senior officers across all four branches of the military, some of whom are seen as having been targeted because of their race, gender or perceived affiliation with Biden administration policies or officials, according to nine U.S. officials familiar with the process. https://t.co/KUvNlQcNV4

[The New York Times @nytimes]

Breaking News: One American was rescued from a U.S. fighter jet crash in Iran, officials said. The fate of a second crew member was unknown. This was the first time during the war in Iran that a U.S. warplane had been brought down over Iran. https://t.co/xI23n0khuu

[Sen. Elissa Slotkin @SenatorSlotkin]

Sec. Hegseth fired over 20 top generals and admirals, including a top Army general who served 7 presidents this week.

Purging generals to settle personal or political vendettas is what happens in China or Russia, not America.

I broke down why this is dangerous back in November:

[Idrees Ali @idreesali114]

The army purge goes beyond the chief of staff. Hegseth has also fired General David Hodne, who leads the Army's Transformation and Training Command, and Major General William Green, head of the Army's chaplain corps.

[Jake Tapper 🦅 @jaketapper]

secretary @PeteHegseth - would you make the same decision had these pilots done the same thing to celebrate @springsteen? Or is this contingent upon folks sharing your political views?

[Idrees Ali @idreesali114]

The latest Economist cover says it all.

[Sen. Elissa Slotkin @SenatorSlotkin]

There are no circumstances where the @SecWar's personal stockbroker should be buying or selling *any* defense-related stocks — but particularly moments before the U.S. sends its service members to fight and die in war.

We cannot allow this type of corruption to become normal, no matter how much President Trump and his Administration flood the zone with new ways to personally enrich themselves and their friends.

https://t.co/yHq4EpPRhV