Trump’s Plans for the Pentagon

Welcome back to Foreign Policy’s SitRep, where our levels of caffeine and pizza consumption this week are TS/SCI.

Here’s what’s on tap for the day: What we know so far about President-elect Donald Trump’s plans for the Department of Defense; a run-down of the leading (and rumored) contenders for the top national security jobs in the new administration; and the news that North Korea’s troops, well, they’re just like us.

Trump’s Pentagon Plans

Following a decisive victory on Tuesday, Trump will become commander in chief of the U.S. military for the second time when he is inaugurated on Jan. 20. With the next Senate under Republican control and the results for the House of Representatives—yet to be called—trending in that direction as well, Trump is likely to face few roadblocks in enacting his agenda once he returns to the White House.

During his first term in office, Trump created a U.S. Space Force and boosted defense spending (a trend that has continued under outgoing President Joe Biden). He overturned Obama-era rules that allowed transgender people to serve in the armed forces and slashed transparency efforts around civilian deaths in overseas drone strikes.

Trump also controversially blurred the lines in civil-military relations: promoting his political agenda while speaking to troops, appointing retired generals to top national security roles, and threatening to deploy the military domestically amid protests sparked by the murder of George Floyd in 2020.

Here’s what we know about Trump’s plans for the Pentagon during his second term in office.

Domestic Deployment? Trump has repeatedly spoken about using the U.S. military on domestic soil for a host of law enforcement purposes, including securing the southern border with Mexico, policing civil unrest, and even cracking down on crime in cities such as Chicago.

He has also spoken about deploying the National Guard or federal troops against his political opponents. “I think the bigger problem is the enemy from within,” Trump told Fox News in October. “We have some sick people, radical left lunatics. And I think they’re the—and it should be very easily handled by, if necessary, by National Guard, or if really necessary, by the military, because they can’t let that happen.”

A long-standing law known as the Posse Comitatus Act bars federal troops from participating in civilian law enforcement roles. But there are some exceptions—namely, the 1807 Insurrection Act, which allows for the military to be deployed to quash a rebellion or at the request of a state government. (The Brennan Center for Justice has an excellent explainer on the Posse Comitatus Act and its shortcomings.)

John Kelly, Trump’s longest-serving White House chief of staff, said in a recent interview with the New York Times that during his first year in office, the Republican president was repeatedly told about the limits on his power to deploy the military against U.S. citizens—but that he still pushed to do so.

In a memo to troops on Thursday, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said that the military was committed to an orderly transition, would refrain from becoming involved in politics, and would carry out all “lawful orders,” Reuters reports.

An American Iron Dome. The 2024 Republican Party platform pledged to build an “Iron Dome Missile Defense Shield” for the United States, something that Trump spoke about repeatedly on the campaign trail. Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system is designed to shoot down short-range rockets fired by groups such as Hamas.

The U.S. military previously purchased two of the systems to consider and test them for potential use in Guam against Chinese missiles. (It has since leased them back to Israel.) But critics of Trump’s proposal have noted that building such a system to defend the entire United States would cost a fortune and would be of little use intercepting medium- and long-range missiles fired by Russia or North Korea.

Schedule F. Also notable from the GOP platform’s national security section was its pledge to “get woke Leftwing Democrats fired as soon as possible.” Trump has vowed to revive efforts that began during his first administration to strip job protections from thousands of federal civil servants in policymaking roles. Trump’s promise to pursue “rogue bureaucrats” has raised fears that the move could be used to politicize the federal workforce. The reinstatement of Schedule F, as the plan is known, could send shock waves across the federal workforce, including at the Department of Defense.

Goodbye DEI. Trump and his allies have long railed against efforts to boost the representation of minority groups across government—including at the Pentagon. During a campaign event in October, Trump said he would create a task force to monitor “woke generals” and eliminate diversity, equity, and inclusion training.

On the campaign trail, Trump rallies featured a video mocking the idea of transgender people serving in the armed forces, and the president-elect is likely to reinstate a ban on their serving in the military once he takes office.

Trump has also promised to restore Confederate names to U.S. military bases. Nine bases named after Confederate soldiers were renamed as part of a congressional effort in 2021.

Let’s Get Personnel

Washington is deep in the throes of its favorite parlor game—trading gossip on who is set to serve in the second Trump administration.

Here’s a look at who is confirmed, rumored, and vying for a top job—and who has turned them down. A word of caution: Two days after the election, almost everything is informed speculation at this point.

Brian Hook, who served as the director of policy planning and special envoy for Iran in the first Trump administration, is expected to lead the transition team at the State Department, CNN reports.

Robert Wilkie, the former Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, is running point on the Pentagon’s transition team, Politico reports.

Peter Deutsch, a former Democratic U.S. representative from Florida has expressed interest in becoming the next U.S. ambassador to Israel, Jewish Insider reports.

Sen. Tom Cotton has said that he would not accept an offer of a cabinet position, despite being a top contender, Axios scoops.

Politico reports that Sens. Marco Rubio and Bill Hagerty and former acting National Intelligence Director Ric Grenell have been mentioned as potential contenders for secretary of state.

Other names that we’re hearing as likely contenders for senior positions include the following: Florida Rep. Mike Waltz, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, former chief of staff on the National Security Council Keith Kellogg, former chief of staff to the acting Secretary of Defense Kash Patel, former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe, former National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien, and former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Elbridge Colby.

On the Button 

What should be high on your radar, if it isn’t already.

New fighter jets for Israel. Israel just bought 25 F-15 fighter jets from Boeing for $5.2 billion, the country’s Defense Ministry announced on Wednesday. The deal is part of a broader U.S. aid package approved by Congress earlier this year and gives Israel the option of buying an additional 25 jets, the ministry said. The first deliveries will take place in 2031, with Israel getting four to six aircraft a year thereafter. In the more immediate term, however, the United States is reportedly sending a squadron of its own F-15s to the region in anticipation of another attack on Israel by Iran.

Russia pummels Ukraine with drones. Ukrainian officials say Russia has dramatically stepped up its long-range drone strikes on Kyiv and other major cities, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky saying the volume of attacks is 10 times what it was at this time last year. Russians have also started using decoy drones without any warheads to confuse and overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses, officials told reporters.

The Ukraine aid scramble. More than $6 billion in outstanding U.S. military aid to Ukraine has yet to make its way to the country, but the Biden administration plans to rush that out the door before Trump’s inauguration, two administration officials told Politico. Yet there are challenges to doing so quickly enough, and Trump could still stop shipments once he takes office.

Canada takes on TikTok. As its fate in the United States continues to hang in the balance, TikTok is facing new headwinds farther north. Canada ordered the Chinese-owned social media app to close its offices in Toronto and Vancouver, citing national security concerns. TikTok said in a statement that it would challenge the decision in court. But authorities clarified that the hugely popular short-form video app can continue to operate in Canada.

Snapshot 

A Ukrainian soldier repairs a Mavic drone at an innovation and repairment center of the Ukrainian army in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, on Oct. 31.Fermin Torrano/Anadolu via Getty Images

From the FP Team

• What Trump’s Win Means for U.S. Foreign Policy
• Trump’s Foreign-Policy Influencers

Put On Your Radar

Nov. 11 to Nov. 22: The U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP29) takes place in Azerbaijan.

Nov. 12: The Biden administration’s deadline for Israel to address the humanitarian crisis in northern Gaza expires.

Nov. 13: Somaliland holds a presidential election.

Nov. 14: Sri Lanka holds parliamentary elections.

Biden travels to Peru for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum.

Quote of the Week

“I think our hesitation, and the hesitation of the Biden administration, has actually fueled the war.”

—Former NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen in an interview with Amy on Wednesday, speaking about Biden’s halting approach to providing military aid to Ukraine.

“It has given Putin appetite for more,” Rasmussen added.

This Week’s Most Read

• Why She Lost by Michael Hirsh
• What Trump’s Win Means for U.S. Foreign Policy by FP Staff
• Trump Wins Second Term by FP Staff

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot

Newly online North Korean troops deployed to Ukraine have been “gorging on pornography,” Financial Times chief foreign affairs commentator Gideon Rachman posted on X, citing a “usually reliable source.”

FP cannot independently verify the claim, but the folks over at Task and Purpose did run it by a Pentagon spokesperson, who said, “As entertaining as that sounds, I can’t confirm any North Korean internet habits or virtual ‘extracurriculars’ in Russia.”