Special Operations Enhancement - A Legislative Approach

Abstract

The FY 1987 Defense Authorization Bill included legislation that directed a major organizational change for U.S. special operations forces that was designed to enhance U.S. capabilities to face low intensity conflict threats. This legislation was unique in that it directed the formation of a unified combatant command, a new Assistant Secretary of Defense, and a Board for Low Intensity Conflict within the NSC. The paper briefly examines the relationship of SOF to low intensity conflict, and then attempts to answer three questions: Why did Congress feel compelled to enact the legislation? What was the rationale behind the final structure, and why was Congress so specific in the language? The legislation, and the events leading up to it, provide a useful study of Congressional-military relations.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 1988
Accession Number
ADA195027

Entities

People

  • Henry L. Koren Jr.

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Biomedical
  • C4I
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Classification
  • Command And Control
  • Congress
  • Geographic Regions
  • Language
  • Law
  • Low Intensity Conflict
  • National Security
  • Organizational Structure
  • Security
  • Special Operations Forces
  • Students
  • Unified Combatant Commands
  • Ussr
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Government and Public Administration Law.
  • Irregular Warfare and Special Operations Cyberspace Operations against Adversarial Threats.
  • Joint Military Operations and Doctrine.