San Diego, CA
Middle East operations could strain Navy, Marine Corps budget and training plans
Top military leaders are warning members of Congress that the cost of ongoing military operations in the Middle East, along with other recent efforts, including in counternarcotics, could soon force difficult decisions on training and overall readiness.
During a congressional subcommittee budget hearing this week, lawmakers questioned how long the Navy and Marine Corps can sustain its current level of operations with a historic amount of warships in the Middle East.
Subcommittee Chairman Rep. Ken Calvert asked Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle how long the Navy could continue operating at its current pace before funding runs short.
“Sir, I will have to start making decisions to change training, operations, certifications events, those types of things we do to generate our force, in the July time frame in the current expenditure,” Caudle said.
The warning comes as Calvert outlined that the Navy is making a $377.5 billion budget request, a 23% increase over the previous fiscal year.
Calvert noted the financial impact the war against Iran has had and said, “Our munitions stockpiles are depleted, our fleet has deferred maintenance — critical maintenance — and our service members have been operating on an extended deployment schedule.”
Rep. Betty McCollum also warned that rising fuel costs tied to the conflict could further strain military operations.
“In addition to the threats our sailors and Marines face, I’m concerned about the broader costs of the war,” McCollum said. “The skyrocketing costs of fuel will limit the Navy and the Marine Corps ability to conduct exercises for the rest of the year.”
Potential reductions in training and certification efforts could have a significant impact in San Diego, home to more than 136,000 active-duty service members, including roughly a fourth of all Marines and a sixth of all Navy sailors, according to the San Diego Military Advisory Council.
Lawmakers also raised concerns about the growing size of China’s naval fleet compared with the United States’.
“Despite our focus on the Middle East and elsewhere across the globe, China still remains our pacing threat,” Calvert added.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth recently testified that the war effort in Iran has carried a nearly $30 billion price tag. The Defense Department is now facing pressure to replenish munitions stockpiles, improve shipbuilding capabilities and maintain readiness for future threats while continuing current operations.
The Department of Defense’s proposed budget for the upcoming year totals $1.5 trillion, the largest defense proposal in U.S. history.
This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC San Diego. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC San Diego journalist edited the article for publication.
San Diego, CA
Karepango San Diego Comic-Con 2026 Debuts, Merchandise
Karepango, the colorful and unapologetic brand that aims to bring a smile in the most unexpected time, is coming to Comic-Con to spread joy, and give attendees the chance to show the world they are imperfect, yet still proud.
Find them at booth #5034, located in the Hall G area of the convention center, and will have dozens of their classic bestsellers, recent products and even a brand new exclusive (and very limited) shirt.
All purchases will receive free gifts, with an extra special gift for purchases over $100.
All clothing is available in sizes XS through 2XL, but in limited quantities per size.
Let’s get shopping:
Have A Good Day Shirts – $48
Limited to 75 pieces
Purple or brown with front and back printing
100% Cotton Knit Sweaters – $88
Oversized and pre-shrunk
100% Cotton T-Shirts – $48
Various Designs
Oversized and pre-shrunk
Tote Bags, Plush Bags, Puffy Bags, IRO Bags, All Sorts of Bags – $28-$45
Various designs
Drink Holders, Mesh Pouches, Nylon Pouches, Headbands, Blind Box Toys, Plush Trinkets – $15-$25
Various designs
Caps, Bucket Hats, Plush Hats, Beanies – $28-$30
Various designs
Bags, Plush, Rugs, Scarves – $50-$80
Various designs
Stickers, Socks, Pins, Air Fresheners – $4-$15
Various designs
Seek and ye shall find:

San Diego, CA
Eons: Life and Death on Pangea – Special Preview Screening
Travel back more than 250 million years with PBS Eons during a special San Diego Comic-Con preview screening of Eons: Life and Death on Pangea before the series officially premieres.
On Saturday, July 25 at 10am, attendees can watch the first episode of the new four-part miniseries, which explores the Permian Period and the “Great Dying,” Earth’s largest known mass extinction event that wiped out more than 80% of all species.
Following the screening, hosts Gabriel-Philip Santos and Michelle Barboza-Ramirez, along with series writer Farhan Mitha, will take fans behind the scenes of the production and stick around for a Q&A about bringing this prehistoric world to life.
San Diego, CA
Gibraltar ushers in a new era as British territory’s border fence with Spain is removed
MADRID (AP) — Thousands of people who travel every day between the southern tip of Spain and the British territory of Gibraltar will no longer have to cross a physical border, beginning on Wednesday.
The official opening at midnight on Tuesday, after a border fence was removed, allows a new freedom of movement under a historic treaty between the European Union and the United Kingdom. It came after years of post-Brexit wrangling.
The contested British Overseas Territory of 38,000 people is perched at the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula, in a strategic location mere miles from Morocco where the Atlantic Ocean meets the Mediterranean Sea.
Soon after midnight, crowds crossed freely between Spain’s La Línea de Concepción and Gibraltar in both directions. Many wore Spanish soccer jerseys after Spain’s victory against France in the World Cup semifinal on Tuesday, adding to the celebratory mood.
“What you feel here is the brotherhood between the two people,” Gibraltar’s Chief Minister Fabian Picardo told Spanish broadcaster RTVE.
A deal that took years to realize
When Britain left the EU in 2020, the relationship between Gibraltar and the bloc had been left unresolved.
Previous talks on a deal to ensure people and goods could keep flowing across the border had made halting progress. In 2025, the EU and U.K. announced an agreement on those issues, with the two sides and Gibraltar’s government signing a treaty Tuesday that eases border crossings.
The U.K.’s Foreign Office Minister Stephen Doughty said Tuesday that the agreement secured Gibraltar’s long-term economic future and interests.
Maroš Šefčovič, the EU’s trade representative, praised the agreement, too.
“It has taken four years of patient, complex negotiation, but the outcome speaks for itself,” Šefčovič said. “It is a very special feeling to see a fence come down.”
Without a deal, Gibraltar could have a faced a hard land border with full passport checks, posing economic risks for the territory deeply dependent on some 15,000 Spaniards — almost half Gibraltar’s workforce — who cross the frontier every day for work.
Mendez Segura, 51, crossed into Gibraltar from Spain on Wednesday for work, unused to the newfound freedom of movement.
“I’ve been crossing over and working in Gibraltar all my life with my identity card,” the home care worker said. “I know you’ll be able to cross without it, but it’s just what I’m used to.”
Leisure visits by people crossing both sides of the border would have been affected, too.
“People who are visiting family in Spain, or whose Spanish family is visiting them in Gibraltar. Children who are going to football matches and extracurricular activities, either in Spain or in Gibraltar. They will be able to do that without having to worry about frontier queues,” Picardo told The Associated Press in an interview.
The deal in effect brings the territory into the EU’s Schengen free travel area. At Gibraltar’s airport and port, entry and exit checks will be conducted by both U.K. and Spanish border officials. The arrangement is similar to what’s in place at Eurostar train stations in London and Paris, where both British and French officials check passports.
Gibraltar was ceded to Britain in 1713, but Spain has maintained its sovereignty claim ever since. Relations between the two countries on the issue of Gibraltar have had their ups and downs over the centuries. The treaty that removed the border fence does not resolve the territory’s contested status.
In Britain’s 2016 Brexit referendum, 96% of voters in the Rock, as the territory is popularly known in English, supported remaining in the EU.
Travelers to Gibraltar from countries outside the Schengen Area, including the U.K., will have to contend with the EU Entry-Exit System, or EES, which was rolled out in Europe in April and replaced passport stamps with biometric data collected through photographs and digital fingerprints.
Facial recognition cameras at the Rock
With the border fence gone, Gibraltar officials have set up live facial recognition cameras at entry points and throughout the territory.
Chief Minister Picardo said the territory will have many more CCTV cameras and that it has increased its police presence as well as resources for customs and Coast Guard agencies.
“The fortress has become a digital fortress now,” Picardo said.
-
Texas3 minutes agoTexas Rangers Announce 2027 Regular Season Schedule
-
Utah9 minutes agoUtah man arrested again for allegedly abusing dog twice in three months
-
Vermont15 minutes agoA Vermont couple builds an 800-square-foot home on a budget – The Boston Globe
-
Virginia21 minutes agoVirginia Tech HC James Franklin Gives High Praise For Clemson’s Dabo Swinney
-
Washington27 minutes agoWill air quality be even worse in Washington DC on Friday?
-
Wisconsin33 minutes agoLIVE UPDATES: Wisconsin air quality, wildfire smoke blankets region
-
West Virginia39 minutes agoRepair work on busiest bridge in West Virginia to happen in phases to “minimize disruptions”
-
Wyoming45 minutes ago
Wyoming Rodeo Stars Set for National High School Finals