Tom Nichols: “The president says he wants to resume nuclear testing but doesn’t seem to know why.”

SpaceX is set to receive $2 billion to develop satellites that can track missiles and aircraft under President Trump’s Golden Dome project, the Wall Street Journal reports.

“The Pentagon has ordered thousands of specialized National Guard personnel to complete civil unrest mission training over the next several months, an indication that the Trump administration’s effort to send uniformed military forces into urban centers — once reserved for extraordinary emergencies — could become the norm,” the Washington Post reports.

“The Defense Department’s newly established ‘quick reaction force’ within the National Guard must be trained, equipped with riot-control gear and ready for deployment by Jan. 1.”

“An existing separate but similar structure, the National Guard Reaction Force, is expected to complete civil unrest training and be fully operational by April 1. The total size of the force will be 23,500 troops across all 50 states and three territories, excluding the District of Columbia.”

The FBI informed Congress that it “strongly” opposed a proposal to make the Office of the Director of National Intelligence the lead counterintelligence agency for the federal government, bringing into public view a rift among top national security officials, the New York Times reports.

The disclosure, made in a pointed and unusual letter, underscored the broader concern at other agencies, including the FBI, over a House bill that would empower Tulsi Gabbard to play a more prominent role in counterintelligence issues.

“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is planning to unveil a consequential overhaul of U.S. arms sales that could reshape how the Pentagon sends weapons to allies and help replenish dwindling stockpiles,” Politico reports.

“Hegseth is expected to announce the changes on Nov. 7 at an unusual gathering of defense industry executives.”

“The Pentagon removed key protections for defense civilian workers and directed that managers move with “speed and conviction” to fire employees with “unacceptable” performance reviews last month, just a day before the government shut down,” the Washington Post reports.

“The move is seen by some managers as necessary to get rid of underperforming employees. Others caution that the edict, signed by Undersecretary of Defense Anthony Tata, the Pentagon’s top personnel policy officer, is so broad it could be used to fire anyone who doesn’t rubber stamp the administration’s programs.”

“The Trump administration launched another round of deadly strikes on vessel it accused of smuggling drugs, killing 14 people in four boats on Monday in its growing military campaign off the Central and South American coasts,” the New York Times reports.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth “said that the strikes — three of them — took place in international waters and that there had been one survivor. They bring the overall death toll to 57 in the campaign, which began in September.”

“In the early hours of this morning, Trump gave another highly partisan speech to the U.S. military, hailing his own political achievements and repeatedly condemning his Democratic opponents and critics in the media,” Politico reports.

“Trump was addressing hundreds of U.S. Navy personnel onboard the USS George Washington aircraft carrier in Tokyo Bay, Japan, about 6,500 miles from D.C. In a raucous, rambling, hourlong speech that flipped between jokey asides and fiery rhetoric, Trump told the troops that the U.S. military is ‘no longer politically correct’ and should ‘defend our country whatever way we have to.’”

“But what’s most striking is Trump’s willingness to use the troops as a foil for his highly partisan rhetoric. He repeatedly condemned his predecessor Joe Biden, told his audience the 2020 election had been rigged and savaged Democratic governors who resist military incursions into their cities.”

“President Trump has said he wants a whole new fleet of warships. And now they have a name,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Senior White House and Navy officials are in early discussions to replace the current mix of warships with a new ‘Golden Fleet’ that would be better suited to counter China and other potential future threats.”

“Trump, who has previously criticized the look of modern warships, is involved in the plans and has had multiple conversations with Navy officials about the new vessels.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the United States is sending an aircraft carrier to Latin America in major escalation of military buildup in the region, the AP reports.

“The U.S. military has conducted its 10th strike on a suspected drug-running boat, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Friday, blaming the Tren de Aragua gang for operating the vessel and leaving six people dead in the Caribbean,” the AP reports.

“President Trump said on Thursday that he would bypass Congress rather than seek its approval to carry out military strikes against drug cartels that traffic narcotics to the United States, even as he vowed to expand the operation from attacks at sea to targets on land,” the New York Times reports.

Said Trump: “I don’t think we’re going to necessarily ask for a declaration of war. I think we are going to kill people that are bringing drugs into our country, OK? We are going to kill them, you know? They are going to be, like, dead.”

“Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has lost the trust and respect of some top military commanders, with his public ‘grandstanding’ widely seen as unprofessional and the personnel moves made by the former cable TV host leading to an unprecedented and dangerous exodus of talent from the Pentagon,” the Washington Times reports.

Said one Army general: “If he ever had us, he lost us.”

“The Trump administration is planning to furlough the vast majority of the civilian staff at a key agency that helps manage the nation’s nuclear weapons stockpile,” Politico reports.

“The military commander overseeing the Pentagon’s escalating attacks against boats in the Caribbean Sea that the Trump administration says are smuggling drugs is stepping down,” the New York Times reports.

“The officer, Adm. Alvin Holsey, is leaving his job as head of the U.S. Southern Command, which oversees all operations in Central and South America, even as the Pentagon has rapidly built up some 10,000 forces in the region in what it says is a major counterdrug and counterterrorism mission.”

“It was unclear why Admiral Holsey is leaving now, less than a year into his tenure, and in the midst of the biggest operation in his 37-year career.”

“Members of Congress are growing concerned over a lack of information from the Trump administration about the intelligence and strategy underlying its strikes on alleged drug smuggling boats in the Caribbean,” NBC News reports.

“Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill have left briefings about the strikes frustrated with the lack of information, said these people: five congressional sources and an additional source with knowledge of the matter. Some have asked for unedited video of the strikes, reflecting the kind of basic information they seek, but the administration has so far refused to provide it.”

“The Trump administration is moving to fortify U.S. skies against potential drone threats ahead of next summer’s World Cup and other marquee mega-events, casting the technology as necessary both to bolster security and to help outpace foreign competition for aviation technology,” Politico reports.

“The administration plans to launch a $500 million effort to support state and local governments as they develop anti-drone security strategies ahead of the soccer tournament being played across the U.S., Canada and Mexico, along with the United States’ 250th anniversary and 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles.”

“He’s already installed a makeup studio complete with lights and a director’s chair at the Pentagon, and now the Daily Mail can reveal that Pete Hegseth has kicked his beauty routine up a notch – by getting Botox,” the Daily Mail reports.

“The Defense Secretary, 45, underwent a round of cosmetic injections last month and has been since seen with noticeably smoother skin and visibly diminished wrinkles.”