Rowan Scarborough
Articles by Rowan Scarborough
New Pentagon manual declares journalists can be enemy combatants
The Pentagon's new thick book of instructions for waging war the legal way says that terrorists also can be journalists. Published June 21, 2015
Green Berets held back in Islamic State fight by flawed intelligence system
Army Green Berets planned for a wide range of actions in Iraq this year but bemoaned the sorry state of U.S. intelligence assets in the country to help the local security forces find and kill Islamic State terrorist targets, an internal Army memo says. Published June 16, 2015
Jason Amerine, Green Beret aiming to free U.S. hostages, caught in FBI web
When Lt. Col. Jason Amerine, a decorated Green Beret, took the big step last summer of contacting a member of Congress on the gnawing question of freeing American hostages, he never suspected the bureaucratic minefield that awaited him, especially from the FBI. Published June 14, 2015
Green Beret Lt. Col. Jason Amerine: Army trying to court-martial him for whistleblowing
A Green Beret war hero under investigation for unauthorized communications with Congress will testify on Thursday that the Army is out to court-martial him on criminal charges. Published June 10, 2015
Army Gen. Randy Taylor introduces his husband at Pentagon Gay Pride event
A married Army general on Tuesday introduced his same-sex spouse at a Pentagon event that featured lots of top brass, including Defense Secretary Ashton Carter as the keynote speaker. Published June 9, 2015
Air Force, Navy restocked with planes, missiles as Congress counters U.S. air power decline
American air power is declining at the very moment U.S. warplanes have been thrust into a long war in the skies over Iraq and Syria and must contain aggressive militaries in Russia and the Pacific. Published June 7, 2015
U.S. Army stops paying Green Beret war hero amid whistleblower probe
The Army has stopped paying an active duty Green Beret war hero who is under investigation, prompting his lawyer to threaten to ask a military judge to intervene. Published June 2, 2015
Islamic State recruits Westerners with promise of Muslim utopia
The Islamic State is building a terrorist society complete with medical centers, central kitchens, weapons factories, oil companies and schools, according to an analysis of the group's copious social media dispatches. Published June 1, 2015
Hillary Clinton-tied think tank bashes Obama’s ISIS war strategy
A think tank with ties to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton issued strong criticisms Thursday of the Obama administration's strategy to combat the Islamic State, with analysts writing that the U.S. is "failing" and needs to change course. Published May 28, 2015
Duncan Hunter, Army battle over Green Beret Jason Amerine investigation
A member of the House Committee on Armed Services is accusing the Army top brass of launching a criminal investigation against a Green Beret war hero as a way to retaliate against the congressman. Published May 27, 2015
Obama’s Islamic State strategy sparks doubt, resentment among Pentagon officials
Beneath the glowing battle reports about Iraq from U.S. military spokesmen in recent months, there remains a strong undercurrent of dissatisfaction among the Pentagon rank and file with the Obama administration's Islamic State strategy. Published May 26, 2015
Women’s combat roles in Israel Defense Forces exaggerated, military traditionalists say
Military traditionalists say women's combat roles in the Israel Defense Forces are exaggerated by advocates in the U.S., noting as an example a recent IDF decision to keep Israeli women from serving on main battle tanks. Published May 25, 2015
Obama, Hillary Clinton Benghazi narrative rebutted by Defense Department report
At the very time President Obama, then-Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and other top leaders were blaming spontaneous protests for the deadly Benghazi attack, the Defense Department broadly circulated a detailed intelligence report that said an al Qaeda-linked group planned the assault 10 days beforehand. Its goal was to kill as many Americans as possible. Published May 19, 2015
Islamic State’s Ramadi rout shows U.S. troops needed in Iraq, military experts say
The retreat of Iraq's security forces in Ramadi and the successful hunt-and-kill mission by U.S. commandos in Syria demonstrate that the Obama administration needs to put more boots on the ground in Iraq to take on the Islamic State, military analysts say. Published May 18, 2015
Women in combat: Test failures raise questions about how many can succeed
Military women washing out in two major tests this spring raises the question of whether a large enough female population exists to produce significant numbers of officers for front-line ground combat, an Army professor says. Published May 17, 2015
U.S. military pressed to design special line of combat boots just for women
Congress is prodding the armed forces to come up with a special line of women's combat boots, in different styles, as studies show that military women are more susceptible to stress fractures from marching and training. Published May 14, 2015
China to sell Jordan missile-firing drones after Obama says no to helping ally
China is offering to sell Jordan missile-firing drones to fight the Islamic State terror army, according to a U.S. congressman. Published May 14, 2015
The Navy’s new female uniforms draw fire at the Academy: ‘Why are women made to look like men?’
A midshipman at the Naval Academy on Wednesday stood up amid a sea of white dress uniforms and asked Navy Secretary Ray Mabus why the service was trying to make women look like men. Published May 13, 2015
Joseph Dunford, new Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, to make call on women in combat
One of the immediate challenges to face Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford this fall as the new Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman will be the social change sweeping the armed forces. Published May 10, 2015
Police protest dangers identified in alert free of political correctness
A private intelligence firm has distributed an "officer awareness bulletin" designed to help police identify in a protest crowd the members of groups more prone to commit violence against cops. Published May 5, 2015
