Lone Candle
Champion of Truth
“The EU’s executive told member countries they can repurpose hundreds of billions of euros in Covid-19 relief money to fund defense projects, reflecting a radical shift in priorities since the days of the pandemic.”
https://www.politico.eu/article/change-spending-plans-or-risk-losing-billions-brussels-warns-eu-countries/
Golden Dome & U.S. Missile Defence – What is it, Can it Work, and the Economics of Missile Defence
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CpFhNXecrb4
Russia’s Axis of Influence: Inside the 2025 U.S. Threat Assessment
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ExJmvgF7ks
Trump has sat for only 12 ‘daily’ intelligence briefings since taking office
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/05/09/trump-intelligence-briefing-frequency-00338946
Trump’s attempt to increase military spending may be hampered by Trump’s tariffs. The tariffs make gaining access to key resources more difficult, and make inputs more expensive, making the increased spending not go as far.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gF3OkIbWnBE
“In his first 100 days in office, President Donald Trump has taken a sledgehammer to many of the nation’s cyber-focused agencies and programs. Now, a normally apolitical community is rising up in protest.
The nation’s cyber agencies, particularly the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, have faced relentless cuts to programs and personnel, heightening concerns about the stability of the workforce and resiliency of U.S. capabilities.”
…
“The industry has long held the view that securing the nation’s most critical networks is a collective national security imperative, with private political opinions mostly kept secondary. But Trump has ushered in an era of hyperpartisanship in Washington and has rewarded public displays of allegiance to the MAGA cause, generating fury among exasperated professionals.
“With the politicization of basically everything in government, including cybersecurity, we are seeing what would be the normal course of business come under scrutiny,” said one cyber industry leader on the sidelines of the RSAC Conference, one of the largest gatherings of cyber professionals in the world. “There are a number of groups, communities if you will, that are trying to take a more aggressive approach to say, ‘Hey, we can’t be quiet or complacent anymore on the way we operate,’ because effectively good faith is no longer the tone that is being taken.””
…
” “Nobody should be blackballed for doing their job,” said a third industry leader. “That’s the situation we have right now — widespread anger that it doesn’t seem to be getting any better. And where are our industry leaders?””
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/05/03/cyber-rebellion-trump-rsa-conference-00325000
Reported: ‘Hegseth aids warned him before the strikes not to discuss sensitive operational details on Signal because the app is not considered as secure as government channels.’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lW2bAN9MA0s
“Ullyot, who resigned from the Pentagon last week, described a department in collapse. He accused Hegseth’s team of “falsehoods” about why three top officials were fired last week, saying they hadn’t leaked sensitive information to the media. He chastised Pentagon officials for how they handled revelations that Hegseth shared sensitive military information in a Signal chat, and he pointed to other leaks that caused embarrassment to the administration.
The remarkable accusations by a former official — who left only two days ago and insists he still supports the Trump administration’s national security policies — underscores the infighting and upheaval that has turned increasingly public in recent weeks.
But he also found himself in the center of several controversies that added to that chaos.”
…
“The Pentagon on Friday fired top staffers — senior adviser Dan Caldwell, deputy chief of staff Darin Selnick and Colin Carroll, chief of staff to the deputy Defense secretary. Joe Kasper, Hegseth’s chief of staff will also leave his role in the coming days for a new position at the agency, according to a senior administration official.”
…
“The three fired staff backed up some of Ullyot’s claims in a Saturday post on X, saying they didn’t know why they were terminated. The trio wrote that they “have not been told what exactly we were investigated for, if there is still an active investigation, or if there was even a real investigation of ‘leaks’ to begin with.”
They charged that “unnamed Pentagon officials have slandered our character with baseless attacks on our way out the door.” They expressed support for the “Trump-Vance Administration’s mission to make the Pentagon great again,” but did not mention Hegseth, with whom they’d worked closely.
The terminations follow a purge of top military officers in February, including former Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. C.Q. Brown, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti, Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan, and Air Force second in command, Gen. James Slife.”
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/20/ullyot-pentagon-hegseth-chaos-00300695
“The New York Times reported that Hegseth shared sensitive information about military operations in Yemen in a private chat on the Signal app that included his wife, brother and personal lawyer — the second reported instance of the secretary sharing operational plans in an unclassified chat. The revelations have reignited the so-called Signalgate scandal and deepened scrutiny over Hegseth’s judgment and leadership.”
…
“Ullyot — once a vocal supporter of the Defense secretary — accused Hegseth’s team of spreading unverified claims about three top officials who were fired last week, falsely accusing them of leaking sensitive information to media outlets.”
https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/21/leavitt-trump-stands-strongly-behind-embattled-hegseth-00300749
EU-UK defense deal in sight at May summit
https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-uk-defense-deal-in-sight-at-may-summit/