Kelly McGillis Looks Back on 'Top Gun'

Legendary actress Kelly McGillis stops by The Editor's Desk to talk about her role in the movie "Top Gun". What was it like working with Tom Cruise? How does she feel about the movie today? And what is her favorite line from the movie?

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Military Benefits and the Fiscal Cliff

Benefits expert Tom Philpott stops by the Editor’s Desk to chat about what’s at risk as Congress edges the nation closer to the "fiscal cliff." What services might be lost? What payrolls could get trimmed? Who might be forced to make the transition to civilian life before he or she is ready?

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Black Hawk Down Author Writes about Bin Laden Raid

Author Mark Bowden stops by the Editor’s Desk to talk about his latest book, "The Finish", which deals with the events that lead up to and the decisions that approved the mission to take down Osama Bin Laden. Mark talks to Ward about what happened behind the scenes at places like JSOC and the White House, the differences between the Bush and Obama approaches to the al Qaeda threat, and how the F3EAD doctrine evolved in the modern military.

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House VA Chairman’s Update on Vet Jobs and the War

“The Editor’s Desk” sits down once again with Congressman Jeff Miller, R-FL, the chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee to talk about the state of the VA, veteran hiring, the war in Afghanistan, and the upcoming presidential election.

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Brandon Webb Hits 'The Red Circle'

Brandon Webb, Navy SEAL vet, New York Times best-selling author, and former editor of Military.com’s Kit Up! blog, stops by the Editor’s Desk to talk about how his young life led him to the SEAL ranks and what it was like to develop a world-class sniper program that trained the likes of Marcus Lutrell and Chris Kyle. .

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House VA Committee Chair Talks Cuts

Editor Ward Carroll sits down with Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fl., to talk about what effect the Congressional Super-committee’s actions may have on the VA budget. Miller also addresses the state of the VA in general and what the future might hold for the agency’s ability to support vets. .

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Marine Infantry Officer Now Ultimate Fighter

Annapolis alum and former Marine Corps infantry officer Brian Stann now tests himself in one of the toughest environments on the planet: the UFC ring. This week Brian stopped by the Editor’s Desk to talk about how the Corps helped him become a world-class competitive fighter.

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Ted Nugent Still Believes

Military.com goes backstage to talk to outdoorsman and rock n’ roll legend Ted Nugent about his experiences with the U.S. military and how he feels about the American landscape these days. Strap yourself in for a wild ride ...

Learn more about Ted’s charities (including military ones) here.

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Inside the AK-47 With NYT Reporter CJ Chivers

In the latest installment of From the Editor’s Desk, Military.com managing editor for news and Kit Up! blogger Christian Lowe speaks with C.J. Chivers of the New York Times about his new book “The Gun.” Chivers -- who is a former Marine infantry officer, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and the Times’ top war correspondent -- wrote the definitive history of the Soviet-built Automatic Kalashnikov 47. In “The Gun,” Chivers tracks the development of the world’s most prolific assault rifle from the early days of Richard Gatling to the Islamic fighters of the Taliban.

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Can the Pentagon’s Budget Really be Reduced?

The midterm elections have generated a lot of chatter about reducing the defense budget to help reduce the national debt, but is the Pentagon really a viable target?  Defense expert and Military.com columnist Winslow Wheeler stops by the Editor’s Desk to explain how the effort might actually succeed (if approached correctly) and what the problems have traditionally been when Congress tries to tackle military spending reform.

And read Winslow’s related op-ed in The Passdown.

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