The Goldwater-Nichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1986: An Interim Assessment

Abstract

The Goldwater-Nichols Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1986 is the most important legislation to affect the military establishment of the United States since 1947. In passing the Goldwater-Nichols Act, the Congress intended, to strengthen the powers of the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Commanders of the Unified and Specified Commands at the expense of the Service Chiefs and the Military Departments, and to improve the quality and timeliness of military advice. This paper makes an interim assessment regarding how well Congressional intent has been achieved. While the vast majority of defense experts, senior military officers, and staff planners believe passage of the Act has increased the quality and timeliness of military advice, there remain some lingering concerns which this paper explores.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Apr 15, 1992
Accession Number
ADA249601

Entities

People

  • Christopher A. Yuknis

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Defense Planning
  • Department Of Defense
  • Financial Management
  • Governments
  • International Organizations
  • Law
  • Military History
  • Military Operations
  • Military Strategy
  • National Governments
  • National Security
  • Naval Operations
  • Navy
  • Second World War
  • Students
  • War Colleges

Readers

  • Defense Financial Management and Audit.
  • Government and Public Administration Law.
  • Military History / Militaries and War Studies