Defense, Deficits, and Deployments: The Future of U.S. Military Policy

Abstract

America’s economic strength and military might go hand in hand. Each is indispensable to the other. Thus, in times such as the present when America’s deteriorating fiscal position requires swift and reasoned attention, it becomes incumbent on the Department of Defense to evaluate how its own operations help or hinder the situation. Deliberate decisions by Congress have further entrenched this relationship vis-à-vis the Budget Control Act of 2011 which directly imposes cuts to DoD spending as part of a larger effort to bring the federal budget toward balance. Even if not for the fiscal circumstances, the present moment is a good one for reevaluating the trajectory of US military strategy. Now that Operation Iraqi Freedom has ended and activities in Afghanistan are waning, DoD will face very different demands on its resources than it has over the past ten years. Asymmetric threats to national security such as terror cells and cyber warfare also continue to pose novel challenges, requiring adaptation by the department.