The Goldwater Nichols Act - Are We Finally There
Abstract
The Goldwater Nichols Act (GNA) was passed into law over twenty one years ago. Initially it was met with tremendous resistance by the services. The resistance has continued over the years but has been restricted primarily to the realm of Joint Officer Management (JOM). The guidance and oversight concerned with JOM in GNA and follow on legislation has long been an area where Congress felt ignored and the Department of Defense (DoD) felt micromanaged. Over time the situation has definitely improved. There is now a culture of joint awareness within DoD that nurtures unification efforts. No one can argue the effect unification has had regarding combat power. Joint Professional Military Education (JPME) and the joint acculturation that occurs while serving in joint duty assignments (JDA) has resulted in operating in a unified manner. It is very rare to see a service component operate unilaterally in today's joint environment. The focus within DoD on joint operations and joint command and control has become the standard. The new focus is to work within coalitions, multinationally, and among the interagency. We assume this is because we have fully met the vision of GNA but are we really there yet?
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 30, 2007
- Accession Number
- ADA469186
Entities
People
- Henry T. Buckley Iii
Organizations
- United States Army War College