| Happy Wednesday and welcome to Overnight Defense. I'm Rebecca Kheel, and here's your nightly guide to the latest developments at the Pentagon, on Capitol Hill and beyond. THE TOPLINE: Word starting leaking last night that CIA Director Mike Pompeo recently met with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un -- which President Trump confirmed in one of his signature morning tweets. The meeting, Trump said, went "very smoothly." "Mike Pompeo met with Kim Jong Un in North Korea last week," Trump said. "Meeting went very smoothly and a good relationship was formed. Details of Summit are being worked out now. Denuclearization will be a great thing for World, but also for North Korea!" Why it matters: The Pompeo-Kim meeting was the highest-level talks we know about between the United States and North Korea since then-Secretary of State Madeleine Albright met with Kim's father, Kim Jong Il, in 2000. Pompeo's meeting was laying the groundwork for an even more historic one -- the summit between Trump and Kim that Trump says could take place in May or June. When the Trump-Kim summit was first announced, some lawmakers and experts were concerned that such a meeting would take place without lower level negotiations first. Pompeo meeting with Kim shows both sides are doing due diligence ahead of the summit. The politics: Pompeo is in the midst of a heated confirmation battle to become secretary of State, with more Democrats coming out against him each day. With Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) vowing to vote against Pompeo and Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) home recovering from cancer, Pompeo needs at least one Democrat to support him to be confirmed. Democrats approved of Pompeo's meeting with Kim as necessary preparations for the Trump summit. But they said it won't change their votes on the secretary of State nomination. Latest from Trump: Trump on Wednesday said he's optimistic for his upcoming meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, but warned he'd be ready to walk out if the talks aren't beneficial to the U.S. Key quote: "If we don't think it's going to be successful, Mark, we won't have it. If I think that it's a meeting that's not going to be fruitful. I won't go. If the meeting when I'm there is not fruitful, I will respectfully leave," he told reporter Mark Landler of The New York Times, during a press conference alongside Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe SYRIA STRIKE POSTGAME: Did Defense Secretary James Mattis urge President Trump to get congressional approval for last week's Syria strikes, only to be overruled? That's what The New York Times reported Tuesday night, citing unnamed administration and military officials. But on Wednesday, the White House and Mattis denied the report. "I have no idea where that story came from," Mattis told reporters at the top of a meeting with the Qatari defense minister. "I found nothing in it that I could recall from my own last week's activities." Why it matters: Trump asserted Article II authority for the strikes, following the trend of recent presidents saying they can launch limited military operations without congressional approval. But some lawmakers are getting increasingly frustrated at that explanation as the Constitution gives Congress the power to declare war. Continuing to follow down this path, they say, would give the president almost unlimited war powers. Trump not ready for more Russia sanctions: Trump said Wednesday that he would only levy additional sanctions on Russia "as soon as they very much deserve it." The remarks followed days of confusion over the administration's stance. PENTAGON REFORM BILL HITS SNAG: The top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee said Wednesday he has "serious concerns" about the committee chairman's plan to cut $25 billion from the Pentagon's defense agencies budget. "In its current form, I have serious concerns about the impact it would have on the mission of the Department of Defense [DOD]," Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.) said in a statement Wednesday. "It appears this proposal could do serious damage to DOD's information infrastructure, testing ranges and community support, as well as the basic DOD functions in the National Capital Region by eliminating critical agencies in one stroke." The background: On Tuesday, House Armed Services Committee Chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) unveiled a proposal he plans to include in this year's National Defense Authorization Act, which subcommittees will begin marking up next week. The plan would impose a mandatory 25 percent spending cut on 28 defense agencies, which include human resources, procurement, information and auditing offices. The plan would also entirely eliminate seven of the 28 agencies: the Defense Technical Information Center, Defense Test Resource Management Center, Office of Economic Adjustment, Defense Technology Security Administration, Defense Information Systems Agency, Defense Human Resources Activity and Washington Headquarters Services. HERO PILOT IS NAVY VET: Tammie Jo Shults, the Southwest Airlines pilot who made an emergency landing Tuesday after one of the plane's engines exploded and shot shrapnel through a window midflight, was one of the first female Navy fighter pilots, the service confirmed Wednesday. According to the records the Navy released, Shults received a commission on June 21, 1985, graduated from flight school in 1989 and was promoted to lieutenant commander in December 1995. She eventually became an instructor pilot for the F/A-18 Hornet and the EA-6B Prowler. "We can confirm that [Lt. Cmdr.] Shults was among the first cohort of women pilots to transition to tactical aircraft," Navy spokeswoman Lt. Christina Sears said in a statement. Gentle ribbing: Shults also tried to join the Air Force before the Navy, according to Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.), who ribbed the Air Force for turning her away. "I know that you all would like to go back and change the decision but ... she tried to be in the Air Force first. You guys weren't taking women pilots at the time," McCaskill told Air Force officials testifying at a Senate Armed Services subpanel. "I'm glad that we have rectified that throughout our military since obviously she showed tremendous skill and poise at one of the most critical moments a pilot could ever face, so I had to tease you a little bit about that before I began my questions." ON TAP FOR TOMORROW Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson and Marines Commandant Gen. Robert Neller will testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee at 9:30 a.m. at the Dirksen Senate Office Building, room G-50. https://bit.ly/2IRv68y A House Armed Services subcommittee will hold a hearing on the Army readiness budget request for fiscal 2019 at 10 a.m. at the Rayburn House Office Building, room 2118. https://bit.ly/2JUaQng ICYMI: -- The Hill: Trump's NASA nominee advances after floor drama -- The Hill: DeVos pushes for school vouchers for military families despite opposition: report -- The Hill: Trump campaign staffer accused of sexual harassment tapped for VA post -- The Hill: Opinion: So far, US intervention in Syria looks like it accomplished the objective -- The Hill: China's attempted power play hands leverage to Trump on North Korea -- Stars and Stripes: Colonel who led dinosaur-puppet oath demoted, forced to retire -- Associated Press: UN team fired on at suspected Syria chemical attack site | 
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