Policy that affects service members and veterans

The Supreme Court heard arguments last year in Consumer Financial Protection Bureau v. Community Financial Services Association of America, Limited, which challenges how the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is funded. The court is expected to release its decision this spring. Photo by Mark Thomas.

Military, Vets Depend on Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Its Future Is Uncertain.

by Sonner Kehrt January 11, 2024January 14, 2026

Military families depend on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to combat predatory financial institutions. A Supreme Court case may decide its future.

A mobile vet center opens its doors for tours during a ceremony commemorating the partnership between the U.S. Marine Corps and Veterans Affairs to provide the mobile vet center services to eligible service members at the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle, Virginia, in 2022. Vet centers offer confidential help for veterans, service members, and their families in a nonmedical setting. The 300 vet centers and more than 80 mobile vet centers are used as points of care to enhance the existing support service provided by the Marine Corps. Photo by Ashley Boster, courtesy of the U.S. Marine Corps.

Newsroom

Vet Center Changes ‘a Stab in the Back’ as Delays, Counselor Shortages Grow

by Anne Marshall-Chalmers December 20, 2023December 21, 2023

Vet centers may be losing what led veterans to depend on them after a slate of changes clients and counselors say have been damaging.

Raub Nash, center, wondered for years why he dreaded the holidays. Turned out he never fully reflected on the awful events he experienced around this time of year. Photo courtesy of the author.

Reflections

This Story Is More Than a Revelation of Why I Hated Christmas

by Raub Nash December 20, 2023January 14, 2026

It is 2023—the holiday season. This exercise of looking in the mirror, of learning who I am and why, has been hard. But it has been healing.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III speaks to servicewomen at the Military Women’s Memorial 25th Anniversary Ceremony at the Military Women’s Memorial in Arlington, Virginia, in October 2022. Photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Alexander Kubitza, courtesy of the Defense Department.

Newsroom

Short Changed: Military Women Face Assault, Harassment, Death. Is Culture to Blame?

by Kristin Davis December 7, 2023December 7, 2023

The history of the military’s response to women’s service has led to an entrenched separate-and-unequal environment.

The Army Honor Guard meets Saria Hildabrand’s body as it arrives in Utah. Photo courtesy of Meredith Barney.

Newsroom

Short Changed: Military Comes with Unique Risks for Domestic Violence, Can Silence Survivors

by Sonner Kehrt and Anne Marshall-Chalmers November 30, 2023January 22, 2026

A War Horse review of military women’s noncombat deaths since 9/11 found domestic violence often ended in death.

Midshipmen march to lunch at the U.S. Naval Academy during the National Discussion on Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment at America’s Colleges, Universities, and Service Academies in 2019. Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Sarah Villegas, courtesy of the U.S. Navy.

Reflections

Short Changed: Military Women’s Deaths by Suicide Linked to Sexual Trauma

by Sonner Kehrt November 16, 2023July 25, 2025

While men in the military have alarmingly high rates of suicide, the rates among military women are rising faster, and their reasons are different.

It took a decade for the author to talk about what happened to her while deployed. Photo courtesy of Unsplash.

Reflections

He Spent Years Learning Other People’s Secret Pains. I Spent Years Hiding Mine.

by E.V. November 15, 2023January 22, 2026

E.V.’s husband spent years serving military sexual trauma survivors, unaware that she, too, was one.

Adrienne Barillas leans against a Humvee in South Korea. “She was so proud of wearing that uniform and all that it supposedly represented,” her mother says. “Sometimes I get mad at her for choosing to wear that uniform, then I feel guilty for those bitter thoughts and emotions.” Photo courtesy of Emogene Barillas.

Newsroom

Short Changed: How The Army Failed Spc. Adrienne Barillas

by Thomas J. Brennan November 8, 2023September 29, 2025

Adrienne Barillas was found naked outside of an Army barracks. The Army ruled her death a suicide. Soldiers and family members say there’s more to the story.

A Land-based Phalanx Weapon System fires at Al Asad Air Base, Iraq. The LPWS is part of the Counter Rocket, Artillery, Mortar (C-RAM) system that Cameron McMillan’s battery used to help protect coalition troops and assets from rockets and drones fired by Iranian-aligned militias. Photo courtesy of the author.

Reflections

We Did Not Fight. This Was Our War, if You Could Call It That.

by Cameron McMillan November 1, 2023

Veteran Cameron McMillan sifted through his memories as the 20th anniversary of the invasion of Iraq approached. Officially, the war is over. But is it?

Lt. Col. Ryan M. Miedema, 3rd General Support Aviation Battalion commander, helps soldiers unload a large donation to Feed Our Vets in Watertown, New York, 2016. Jeff Cook, president of the board of directors for Feed Our Vets’ Watertown location, said they are a 100% volunteer run organization that serves local veterans in need with food, socialization, and hope. Photo by Spc. Thomas Scaggs, courtesy of the U.S. Army.

Newsroom

Veterans Who Are Food Insecure Are Less Likely to Seek Help Than Civilians

by Anne Marshall-Chalmers October 26, 2023July 25, 2025

More than a million veterans are food insecure. Most at risk are younger vets with families, women, and those with mental health concerns or lower incomes.