Defense Management Challenges for the Next American President

Abstract: The next American president will face a daunting list of national
security problems, including a serious defense budget crunch. The budget crisis
will be deepened by the global financial crisis, a tapering of supplemental
funding associated with the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the steady
growth of military healthcare and other personnel costs. After six years of rapid
defense budget increases, the Pentagon has lost the practice ofmatching strategy
and resources. The next president will need to manage risk among investments
in irregular warfare, counterterrorism, balancing new super powers, counter-
ing weapons of mass destruction, and traditional warfare. He will also need to
begin to build non-military ‘‘soft power’’ capabilities outside of the Pentagon.

[此贴子已经被nlm0402于2009-5-18 15:14:01编辑过]