Inland Empire Progressive

Something has gone deeply wrong when the military an institution grounded in duty, discipline, and the apolitical defense of the nation begins to smell like a campaign rally in camouflage. Yet this is precisely the path that Rep. Jay Obernolte and the Trump administration are pushing us down, with scant resistance. A recent report reveals that Pentagon officials are considering a recruiting campaign built around the legacy of  Charlie Kirk , the conservative activist recently assassinated, with slogans like “Charlie has awakened a generation of warriors” and outreach tied to Turning Point USA chapters on college campuses. Consider what that means: turning military recruitment into a partisan memorial, collapsing lines between the state’s defense apparatus and a political movement. The service is outside partisan politics and serves the Constitution, not a party or the president. When the Trump administration and Obernolte stoop to leverage the uniform as a megaphone for political m...

 The role of Congress in foreign policy isn’t to be an employee at a rubber stamp company. The Constitution doesn’t give the president a blank check to meddle abroad while lawmakers play spectator. But if you were looking at Rep. Jay Obernolte lately, you might assume Congress is just a fancy prop and Obernolte is auditioning to be Trump’s personal assistant to the Department of Defense. The Trump Administration is attacking boats up and down the  South American  coast with no rationale fracturing alliances and sending ripples through Latin American politics. This development demands Congressional attention. Such moves must be debated, scrutinized, and subject to congressional oversight. Instead, what we’re seeing Republicans giving Trump a pass. Meanwhile, our representative Jay Obernolte doesn’t seem to mind. He’s hardly been vocal in demanding hearings, reviewing executive actions, or forcing accountability. He raises barely a whisper when Trump acts unilaterally. Inla...

It appears that in 2025, conservatives are going all-out to weaken America’s alliances. In a dazzling feat of geopolitical incompetence, President Donald Trump just floated the idea of expelling  Spain  from NATO. Spain is a country that joined NATO over four decades ago and has participated in many U.S. backed operations and is now called a "laggard” by the President. As strategy, recommending to expel a long-standing member is reckless. As foreign policy, it’s just plain stupid. It’s not just about Spain. This is emblematic of a deeper pattern of conservatives pushing an us-versus-them worldview, confusing allies, and loosening the threads that tie the United States to its security architecture around the globe.  Weak alliances make for a weaker America. The moment we start treating allies as suggestions and expendable is the moment we undermine the very foundations of our global power. We lose early warning partners, basing agreements, intelligence sharing. We invite a...

  I can't imagine that Congressman Jay Obernolte would treat the systematic  removal  of experienced senior military leaders like background noise. That silence would not be a neutral act. It would be a political choice. It would be a decision that says: “I will look away while the scaffolding of American defense is dismantled.” This is the sort of silence that should make any voter — conservative, moderate, or liberal — angry. Military readiness is not a partisan talking point. It is not a convenient backdrop for cable-news sound bites. It’s the difference between deterrence and chaos, between a clear chain of command and a brittle, politicized substitute. When a cascade of firings and abrupt removals of senior officers occurs from the chairman of the Joint Chiefs to intelligence directors and other four-star leaders —the republic deserves more than the faint chirp of a perfunctory press office; it deserves vigorous, public scrutiny from every member of Congress, includi...

  There was a time when conservatives like Rep. Jay Obernolte wrapped themselves in the flag, preached about “peace through strength,” and warned that weakness abroad invited danger at home. That era is over. Today’s conservatives aren’t defending America’s global leadership—they’re destroying it. By coddling Russia, equivocating on Israel, sneering at NATO, and abandoning the very idea of soft power, the right is appeasing our enemies and leaving the United States exposed. Take Donald Trump’s latest  excuse-making . After Russian drones violated Polish airspace—an unmistakable challenge to NATO. Trump does what he always does...chicken out, suggesting it “may have been a mistake.”  A mistake? This isn’t a toddler spilling milk—it’s a nuclear-armed authoritarian power testing NATO’s resolve. To wave it away is not just naïve—it’s appeasement. It tells Vladimir Putin he can push further without consequence, that America no longer has the will to defend its allies. Instead ...

Ranking Structure Reform is one of the most direct ways to cut cost in the defense department. The current ranking structure is too bureaucratic in both the enlisted and officer ranks. Getting rid of the rank of Private and 2nd Lieutenant will save several million dollars in personnel costs because they are duplicate ranks. I would try to reform the current ranks from the current 9 grades down to 6. I would also reform the General Ranks from the current 4 down to 2. I remember a little ditty that I was taught in the Marine Corps to remember the General Ranks: Be My Little General. Which is acronym for Brigadier General, Major General, Lieutenant General, and General.

  Why Northrop Grumman has a Missle Engineering Center in San Bernardino is anybody's guess.  Before Norton Air Force Base was decommissioned in 1994, Northrup Grumman worked on and tested missle design programs. It still operates hangars there. Northrup Grumman says  : "The Missile Engineering Center serves as a vital proving ground for missile technology development and provides support to several key government missile programs. The center's flagship programs include the ICBM Minuteman III modernization program where Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor responsible for maintaining, sustaining and modernizing the nation's fleet of Minuteman III missiles; and the Kinetic Energy Interceptor program – a critical boost/ascent or midcourse-phase missile defense program where Northrop Grumman is the prime contractor developing and testing this capability." I have never seen a missle launch from the former Air Force b...