The National Guard and WMD Homeland Defense.

Abstract

Weapons of mass destruction (WMD) pose a new and significant threat to American security. The nation does not presently possess the ability to adequately deal with this threat. Congress has tasked DoD to develop capabilities to deal with this threat. In particular, DoD has undertaken programs to train those who will initially respond to a WMD attack (preparedness), and to form units with technical WMD skills to assist in a larger federal relief effort (response). DoD's present concept for preparedness and response is not adequate to provide a long-term, comprehensive defense. The preparedness program is narrow in focus and ignores necessary refresher training. Response is fundamentally the addition of small technical units added to the current disaster relief (DR) structure. DR is an ad hoc organizational response neither dedicated nor time sensitive to the incident. The DR structure is composed of units dispersed throughout DoD components and commands, and responsible to different authorities. The National Guard can, if properly structured, provide genuine WMD homeland defense. Its inherent strengths and characteristics make it the force of choice for this mission. Its integration at the state level offer a model for civil-military interagency cooperation, and its infrastructure is an ideal base to establish a comprehensive defense throughout the nation. The National Guard should be tasked with the WMD homeland defense mission. It should reorganize its excess 8 combat divisions and 3 separate combat units into Homeland Defense Divisions. Combat forces should convert to combat support/combat service support (CS/CSS) units, with emphasis on WMD. As well as meeting the WMD threat, this change in capability will meet identified Army CS/CSS shortfalls. Divisions should be organized to coincide with FEMA's regions and be responsible for all military support operations within their regions. WMD homeland defense is a strategic opportunity for the National Guard.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 21, 1998
Accession Number
ADA357173

Entities

People

  • Melvin G. Spiese

Organizations

  • United States Army Command and General Staff College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Combat Forces
  • Combat Support
  • Command And Control
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Department Of Homeland Security
  • Disasters
  • Emergency Response
  • Employment
  • First Responders
  • Governments
  • Homeland Defense
  • Humanitarian Assistance
  • Military Personnel
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • United States
  • Warfare

Readers

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