MIL News Weekly

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.

We’ll 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.

Here’s what’s 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 veterans—women—thereby
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  in 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  in 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  in 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.

Thank you for tuning in.

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We’ll be back next week with another
roundup of the news that matters most

to the military and veteran community.