Overnight Defense: Space Force chooses 2,410 airmen to join ranks | Fire aboard Navy ship extinguished | Congress backs push for national cyber czar

Happy Thursday and welcome to Overnight Defense. I’m Ellen Mitchell, and here’s your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. CLICK HERE to subscribe to the newsletter.

THE TOPLINE: The U.S. Space Force has chosen an initial batch of more than 2,400 airmen to transfer into the military’s newest branch.

The Space Force, in a news release Thursday, said it has chosen 2,410 members to join its ranks starting Sept. 1. 

“This is an exciting and historic time for these space operators who will be some of the first members to join the Space Force,” Lt. Gen. David “DT” Thompson, the service’s vice commander, said in a statement “Each one of them has an important responsibility to contribute bold ideas to shape the Space Force into a 21st century service.”

The first batch: The first batch of transfers from the Air Force was chosen from the more than 8,500 airmen the Space Force said applied to join the service in May.

Those chosen to transfer first come from space operations career fields. Volunteers with more general career fields will be chosen later by transfer boards expected to start in February, the news release said.

About 6,000 of the initial 8,500 applicants will eventually be chosen to transfer into the Space Force, the service has previously said.

The background: The Space Force was officially created as the sixth branch of the military in December with President Trump’s signing of the annual defense policy bill. Its establishment fulfilled a top priority for Trump since he first coined the name Space Force in 2018 and turned it into a reliable applause line at his campaign rallies.

The new service is aimed at protecting U.S. assets in space, such as satellites, from threats from Russia and China.

Though about 16,000 military and civilian personnel from the former Air Force Space Command have been assigned to work for the Space Force, those service members are still formally part of the Air Force. 

NAVY PUTS OUT USS BONHOMME RICHARD FIRES AFTER 4 DAYS OF FIGHTING BLAZE: The Navy extinguished all known fires aboard the USS Bonhomme Richard after more than four days of fighting the devastating blaze, a top service official said Thursday.

The Navy does not yet know the cause of the fire that began Sunday morning as the amphibious assault ship was in the port at Naval Base San Diego. 

“Our fire teams are investigating every space to verify the absence of fire. Until every space is checked and there are no active fires we will not be able to commence any official investigations,” Rear Adm. Philip Sobeck, commander of Expeditionary Strike Group Three, said in a statement. 

Too early to tell: Sobeck — who in the past few days has expressed optimism that the ship would sail again — said that the Navy does not yet know the extent of the ship’s damage and that it is “too early to make any predictions or promises of what the future of the ship will be.”

How it happened: The fire first broke out on the USS Bonhomme Richard — a small aircraft carrier that transports Marines — in a lower cargo area, where cardboard and drywall supplies were kept. The ship was undergoing maintenance at the shipyard when the blaze began.

The fire suppression system aboard the vessel was inoperable at the time due to the maintenance work, Sobeck said Monday.

As a result of the fire, 63 personnel — 40 sailors and 23 civilians — were treated for minor injuries including heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation. 

How they put it out: Sobeck said Thursday that hundreds of sailors and federal firefighters battled the flames from inside and outside the ship, with helicopter squadrons dropping more than 1,500 buckets of water on the vessel and nearby tugboats spraying water to cool the ship’s hull. 

Lingering issues: The fire, though put out, has also raised environmental concerns, as the blaze sent acrid smoke clouds over San Diego and the Coast Guard has contracted an Oil Spill Response Organization to preemptively guard against any potential fuel spills or other debris.

“The Navy continues to work together with regulators, county and state in protecting our environment and preparing to address the community’s concerns as we move forward to the next phase,” Sobeck said.

CONGRESS BACKS PUSH FOR NATIONAL CYBER CZAR: Bipartisan calls to put in place a national cybersecurity director in the White House are gaining steam on Capitol Hill two years after a similar position was eliminated. 

The support comes after months of increasing cyberattacks against everything from hospitals to research groups to federal agencies during the COVID-19 pandemic, and as lawmakers look to bolster federal cybersecurity as more Americans move online. 

‘Incidents of national consequence’: In the latest high-profile incident, several prominent Twitter accounts, including those of former Vice President Joe Biden and former President Obama, were compromised Wednesday in what appeared to be a bitcoin scam.

The push also comes ahead of the elections in November as the country continues to deal with the fallout from Russian meddling in 2016, which included hacking emails from Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton‘s campaign.

“A national cyber director would better protect the country in cyberspace, and we must make sure we are prepared for and can respond effectively to cybersecurity incidents of national consequence,” Rep. Jim Langevin (D-R.I.) told The Hill on Wednesday.

Reestablishing a cut position: Langevin is among a group of bipartisan House members who introduced legislation last month to create a Senate-confirmed position of national cybersecurity director at the White House. The director would serve as the president’s advisor on cybersecurity and other emerging technology issues, and the official would work to coordinate cybersecurity issues between agencies.

The position of White House cybersecurity coordinator, previously held by Rob Joyce, was cut in 2018 by former national security adviser John Bolton in an effort to decrease bureaucracy after the position was first created under Obama.

The decision led to bipartisan pushback on Capitol Hill, with members of Congress expressing extreme concern over the lack of a central figure to coordinate federal cybersecurity priorities.

Context: The push to reestablish the position comes as cybersecurity concerns have intensified. The 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment compiled by former Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats listed cybersecurity as the top global threat, noting that every U.S. foreign adversary would likely seek to undermine American policies through cyberattacks and influence operations.

Congress is considering reinstating the position with greater authority to ensure federal coordination in responding to a similarly disruptive nationwide cyberattack. 

ON TAP FOR TOMORROW

Defense Secretary Mark Esper, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Mark Milley, and Senior Enlisted Adviser to the Chairman Ramón “CZ” Colón-López will hold a virtual global town hall meeting to answer questions from service members, their families and DOD civilians at 1 p.m. https://www.facebook.com/DeptofDefense/?utm_source=Daily%20on%20Defense%2007162020_07%2F16%2F2020&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=WEX_Daily%20on%20Defense&rid=78393

 

The Center for a New American Security will hold a virtual conversation with Gen. John Raymond, the first chief of space operations, at 1 p.m. https://cnas.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Jn3DMlqOQyC33pMvGHeJDg?utm_source=Daily%20on%20Defense%2007162020_07/16/2020&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=WEX_Daily%20on%20Defense&rid=78393

 

ICYMI

— The Hill: Former military leaders push to extend ban on offshore drilling in Florida gulf 

— The Hill: MS-13 member charged with terrorism-related offenses for first time

— The Hill: Opinion: Our most urgent cure: National service

— Stars and Stripes: Military nears 19,000 coronavirus cases as Army surpasses 6,000; several bases reinstate travel restrictions

— Defense News: Lord hopes to loosen weapon export restrictions in next six months

— Reuters: Explainer: U.S. Congress readies $740 billion defense bill covering far more than bullets