Robert Levinson

Abandon Old Assumptions About Defense Spending

In 2010, then-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen said, “The most significant threat to our national security is our debt.” At the time the national debt was climbing fast. In 2008 it was about 68 percent of GDP, but due to the…

BGOV Top 20: Army Issues Second RFI for $4B IT Hardware Contract

The U.S Army released a second request for information (RFI) on Jan. 26 for its five-year, $4 billion Common Hardware Systems 6th Generation (CHS-6) contract. CHS-6, the follow-on to the $3.9 billion single-award CHS-5 contract held by General…

GovCon Flash: Navy Reopens $50B SeaPort NxG RFP for New Bids

The U.S. Navy triggered the start of rolling admissions Jan. 11 for new companies seeking a slot on its 10-year, $50 billion, SeaPort Next Generation (SeaPort NxG) professional services contract. The rolling admission process will allow new companies…

Fiscal 2020 Pentagon Contracting Hits Record $445 Billion

Driven by a volatile international security environment and combating the Covid-19 pandemic, the Department of Defense increased contract spending to $445.5 billion in fiscal 2020, an increase of nearly 10% from $404.5 billion disbursed in fiscal…

Pentagon Releases Second Draft RFP for $58B Health Care Contract

The Defense Department released its second draft request for proposal (DRFP) for its massive health services contracts on Dec. 11. The combined value of the two proposed contracts could be at least $58 billion based on the value of the incumbent…

The Jewish VeteranThe Jewish Veteran Volume 74 • Number 4 • 2020

A Jewish Voice for Veterans and a Veteran’s Voice for Jews JWV in the Community .......12 National Ladies Auxiliary ...18 Museum News........................20 Taps ........................................... 22 D’vrei HaShomrim…

Pentagon’s Advisory Group, JASON, Survives Another Competition

Despite government efforts to eliminate a decades long-standing program, known as JASON, which provides the Pentagon with scientific advisory support, the Defense Department confirmed in a Nov. 28 its plans to keep the program and issues a request…

Pentagon Releases Draft RFP for $500M Medical Research Contract

The Department of Defense released a draft request for proposal (DRFP) for medical research and development support on November 13. Based on the incumbent value, Bloomberg Government estimates the potential value of this contract at about $500…

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the U.S. Military

As Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s coffin was carried up the steps of the Capitol to lie in state in September, the soldiers who carried the first woman to be so honored were led by another woman of distinction: U.S. Army Capt. Shaye Haver, company…

Army Budget Office Competes $106 Million Cloud Contract

The U.S. Army is re-competing a five-year, $105.8 million, contract to manage its cloud computing environment, according to a sources sought notice on Oct. 28. The contract, Army Resource Cloud (ARC), will support of the Program Budget Data…

Intelligence Contractors Vying for Slimmer Spy Budget in FY 2021

The Department of Defense and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) released their intelligence budget requests for fiscal 2021 totaling $85 billion earlier this year. DOD and ODNI released enacted 2020 figures Oct. 21, allowing…

Fiscal 2020 Civilian Contracting Hits Record $228 Billion

The fight against the COVID-19 pandemic drove civilian contract spending across the federal government to a record high of $228 billion in fiscal 2020, which ended on Sept. 30, according to Bloomberg Government data available as of Oct. 6. The double…

Many Black World War II Veterans Were Denied Their GI Bill Benefits. Time to Fix That.

During World War II 1,154,486 black Americans served in uniform. Not only did they face continued brutal racism and discrimination when they returned home from the war, but the benefits of the GI Bill, which Congress passed as a gesture of gratitude…

DOD Releases Draft RFP for New $58 Billion Health Care Contracts

The Pentagon released a draft request for proposal (DRFP) for the next generation of its massive healthcare contracts on Aug 28. The two contracts are potentially valued at more than $58 billion. The DRFP is for the fifth-generation of managed-care…

Navy Seeks Contractors for $5 Billion in Global Construction

The Navy released an Aug. 20 request for proposal (RFP) for an 8-year, $5 billion, multiple-award contract that will deliver global construction. The contract, Global Contingency Construction (GCC), primarily will provide construction work including…

At ‘em, Girls; Give ‘er the Gun: Changing the symbols that shape a military identity

Air Force Spending Likely to Heat Up in Arctic: Defensive Line

The Department of the Air Force has outlined a new Arctic Strategy designed to implement guidance of the Defense Department’s 2019 plan, according to a July 21 announcement. This week’s edition of Defensive Line, a weekly column by Bloomberg…

Air Force Updates $25B Training Contract: Top 20 (Corrected)

The U.S. Air Force is planning to a release a draft statement of objectives and other documentation this November for its $25 billion training and simulation contract, according to an announcement released on July 9. Training Systems Acquisition…

On Intelligence, Forecasting and Risk

On April 1, The Nation magazine published an article with the breathless headline “Exclusive: The Military Knew Years Ago That a Coronavirus Was Coming.” The article went on to highlight some remarkably prescient details from a draft US Northern…

Spy Agency Releases Draft RFP for $400 Million IT Contract

The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency has released a draft request for proposals for a 10-year information technology contract worth up to $400 million, according to a June 4 announcement from the intelligence community. The program, known as…