Militarizing the Interagency
Abstract
To achieve national strategy, all elements of national power must be used in concert with one another. Our Nation accomplishes this through the Interagency Process (IAP), which is rife with problems that inhibit effective coordination and execution of the national strategy. The problems within the IAP bear much similarity to those experienced by the U.S. military prior to the Department of Defense Reorganization Act of 1987 (Goldwater-Nichols Act). Goldwater-Nichols enforced the "jointness" that the individual services were reluctant to support and profoundly enhanced the warfighting capability of the Armed Forces. The apparent success of Goldwater-Nichols is worthy of study in solving the interagency problems. The major problems inherent in the IAP are analogous to those present in the military prior to the Goldwater-Nichols Act, and should be addressed in the same way -- through legislation. Legislation should include measures to create a common interagency culture, doctrine, regional focus, and directive authority at both the national and regional levels. These measures must be broad and far-reaching to ensure that the United States uses all its elements of national power in pursuit of national strategy.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Feb 14, 2005
- Accession Number
- ADA464627
Entities
People
- Jason D. York
Organizations
- Naval War College