The move to repeal the ‘roadless rule’ would pave the way for road construction and logging in nearly 45 million acres of untouched back country.

The defense secretary’s decision to block the officers’ promotions appears driven by his anti-diversity stance rather than based on merit.

That figure would far surpass the costs of the U.S. airstrike campaign to date and aims to boost production of critical weapons depleted in the conflict, people familiar with the matter said.