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Mike Glenn

Mike Glenn

mglenn@washingtontimes.com

Mike Glenn grew up on Navy bases as the son of a career sailor but then decided to annoy his father and joined the Army after he graduated from high school in the Dallas area. He did a hitch as an enlisted soldier in Germany during the Cold War, where he spent a considerable amount of time in the field on maneuvers. After leaving the Army, he moved back home to northeast Texas and entered the University of Texas at Arlington where he studied history. He also took Army ROTC classes at UT Arlington and upon graduation received a commission as a Second Lieutenant. He was assigned to the 3rd Cavalry Regiment at Fort Bliss in El Paso and took his platoon to the Middle East where he fought in the Gulf War. He got into journalism after Operation Desert Storm and has worked at newspapers and magazines throughout Texas. He joined The Washington Times from the Houston Chronicle. He can be reached at mglenn@washingtontimes.com.

Articles by Mike Glenn

In this Feb. 12, 2009, photo, the Pentagon is seen from Air Force One. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak) ** FILE **

Ex-Marine general decries shrinking force, swelling bureaucracy

In addition to the soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines who actually fight the nation's battles, more than 60 people with the job title "deputy assistant secretary of defense" clock in at the Pentagon every morning. The staff assigned to the Office of the Secretary of Defense has increased a hundredfold since 1947 when President Truman appointed James Forrestal to the position.

July 29, 2021
Capt. Chris Marvin, commander of the USS San Jacinto, observes as Lt. j.g. Colton Drake maneuvers a simulated warship alongside a cargo vessel at the Navigation Seamanship and Shiphandling Trainer in Norfolk, Va., on Tuesday, July 27, 2021. (Mike Glenn/The Washington Times)

Navy turns to virtual shipboard training to prevent real-life accidents

The sky was dark and the sea was calm on June 17, 2017, when the guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald crashed into the ACX Crystal, a Philippine-flagged cargo ship off the coast of Japan. The collision killed seven sailors and caused extensive damage to the destroyer. No injuries were reported aboard the merchant vessel. The Navy is working to address those issues with its Mariner Training Centers in Norfolk, Virginia, and San Diego, California.

July 29, 2021
In this April 11, 2019, photo, then-U.S. Strategic Command Commander Gen. John Hyten testifies before a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington. The Senate has confirmed the nomination of Hyten to become the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) **FILE**

Pentagon must pick up the pace to counter China, top general warns

Something happened to the U.S. military over the past 20 years as it fought terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan armed with homemade bombs and weapons more suitable for a museum than a battlefield. The nation's second-most senior military leader says America's fighting forces have become cumbersome and mired in bureaucracy.

July 26, 2021
Supporters of the Taliban carry the Taliban's signature white flags in the Afghan-Pakistan border town of Chaman, Pakistan, Wednesday, July 14, 2021. The Taliban are pressing on with their surge in Afghanistan, saying Wednesday that they seized Spin Boldaka, a strategic border crossing with Pakistan — the latest in a series of key border post to come under their control in recent weeks. (AP Photo/Tariq Achkzai)

U.S. launches airstrikes against Taliban forces

The U.S. military revealed Wednesday it has launched a series of airstrikes against several targets in Afghanistan to support the government in Kabul in their fight against Taliban insurgents, even as the withdrawal order from President Biden is nearly completed.

July 22, 2021
The High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV or Humvee) is a family of light, four-wheel drive, military trucks and utility vehicles produced by AM General.[8] It has largely supplanted the roles previously performed by the original jeep, and others such as the Vietnam War-era M151 jeep, the M561 "Gama Goat", their M718A1 and M792 ambulance versions, the Commercial Utility Cargo Vehicle (CUCV), and other light trucks. Primarily used by the United States military, it is also used by numerous other countries and organizations and even in civilian adaptations. The Humvee saw widespread use in the Gulf War of 1991, where it negotiated the treacherous desert terrain; this usage helped to inspire civilian Hummer versions. After going through a replacement process, the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV) was chosen as its successor.

Truckmakers put off by Army red tape, contract rules, GAO says

America's leading truck manufacturers are passing on lucrative contracts with the U.S. Army because of burdensome regulations, the slow pace of the process and being stuck with the bill for a prototype if the contract is canceled at the last minute.

July 17, 2021
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark Milley, at podium, speaks during a ceremony marking full operation of the NATO's Joint Force Command aboard the USS Kearsarge at Naval Station Norfolk, Thursday , July 15, 2021, in Norfolk, Va. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

Trump launches broadside against Milley over ‘coup’ reports

Joint Chiefs of Staff head Gen. Mark A. Milley talked of NATO and new strains on the international order in a speech Thursday, but stayed far away from a new book's account of his reported concerns that former President Donald Trump and his followers might stage a military coup to remain in power after the 2020 election.

July 15, 2021
In this Nov. 30, 2017, file photo, American soldiers wait on the tarmac in Logar province, Afghanistan. With American troops withdrawing from Afghanistan, pressure has been mounting for the Biden administration to plan a military evacuation of Afghans who supported U.S. military operations during two decades of war in their country. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul, File)

U.S. Afghan pullout weighs heavy on vets

Joe Chenelly, a former U.S. Marine who was there at the beginning as part of the U.S. invasion force into Afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks in 2001, is not happy with how the longest war in America's history is coming to a close.

July 14, 2021
In this image provided by the U.S. Navy, sailors aboard the guided-missile destroyer USS Michael Murphy (DDG 112) render honors to Battleship Missouri Memorial during the official ceremony for the 75th anniversary of the Japanese surrender that ended World War II, Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2020, in Honolulu, Hawaii. (Petty Officer 1st Class Devin Langer/U.S. Navy via AP)

‘Woke’ Navy brass not focused on fighting, winning wars, report says

Top Navy leaders are more interested in micromanaging subordinates than sinking enemy vessels, are increasingly risk-averse, can't maintain their own ships and overreact to any negative news story, no matter how ridiculous. Those are just some harsh findings from a newly released report conducted by a retired Navy flag officer and retired Marine general.

July 13, 2021
China's military members perform near a display showing the navy's aircraft carrier in a segment of a gala show ahead of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party in Beijing on Monday, June 28, 2021. China is marking the centenary of its ruling Communist Party this week by heralding what it says is its growing influence abroad, along with success in battling corruption at home. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan) **FILE**

Rivalry with U.S. heats up with new Chinese supercarrier

Pentagon officials say they are confident the new Gerald R. Ford-class of Navy supercarriers will dominate in any conflict with an adversary, but China is rapidly constructing its own carrier and is eager to join the "supercarrier arms race" to project power well beyond its territorial waters.

July 12, 2021