Washington Report

The Senate yesterday confirmed by unanimous consent Lt. Gen. Thomas Carden to be the vice chief of the National Guard Bureau.

Many plans are already in place for the 148th General Conference & Exhibition, Aug. 28-31. More than 4,000 National Guard officers, family members and guests will gather for the conference in Indianapolis, under the theme The National Guard: America’s Strength at Home & Abroad.

SHEEPDOG, an award-winning movie set for nationwide release Friday, addresses the varied challenges veterans confront as they reintegrate into civilian life after returning from overseas deployment.

President Donald Trump announced his intent to remove National Guard troops from Chicago, Los Angeles and Portland in a Dec. 31 Truth Social post.

Most NGAUS members are now eligible to escort Honor Flights of veterans traveling to Washington, D.C., from around the country to visit memorials built to commemorate their service.

China’s military modernization poses a direct and growing threat to U.S. security, according to a new Pentagon assessment released last week.

Army Spc. Sarah Beckstrom, a military police officer assigned to the 863rd Military Police Company, West Virginia Army National Guard, was laid to rest with full military honors on Dec. 9 at the West Virginia National Cemetery in Grafton. She died on Nov. 27 after being fatally wounded in the line of duty during a shooting near Farragut Square in Washington, D.C.

The event provides a platform for those involved in Guard advocacy nationwide to discuss priorities as Congress begins deliberations on fiscal 2027 defense legislation, said retired Col. Jon “Ice” Eisberg, the association’s vice president for government affairs.

Two Iowa Army National Guard Soldiers were killed and three were wounded Saturday in Syria by a gunman with suspected ties to the Islamic State. A civilian interpreter was also killed in the attack. “The gunman was engaged and killed,” according to a U.S. Central Command report.

Service members will receive a 3.8% pay raise beginning Jan. 1 under the final version of the annual defense policy bill announced by the House and Senate on Sunday night.

Air National Guardsmen would have a permanent federal tuition assistance program under a bipartisan bill introduced last week in the House.

Saturday is the 389th anniversary of the National Guard’s birth. On Dec. 13, 1636, the Massachusetts Bay Colony’s General Court, the colony’s legislature, organized the North, South and East regiments from the independent militia in 14 villages around Boston to better defend the colony.