Military Forces: What is the Appropriate Size for the United States

Abstract

For several years, some Members of Congress and other military analysts have argued that the U.S. Armed Forces are too small to adequately meet all the requirements arising in the post-Cold War era and particularly in the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT). In January 2004, the Department of Defense (DOD) acknowledged a problem by temporarily adding 30,000 troops to the authorized active duty end strength of the Army. Congress addressed the issue by raising end strength in the FY2005 authorization bill, H.R. 4200 and S. 2400 (P.L. 108-375). This report describes the background of this action, current Administration planning, and assesses several significant issues for Congress. The report will be updated.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 03, 2005
Accession Number
ADA479055

Entities

People

  • Edward F. Bruner

Organizations

  • Library of Congress

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Human Systems
  • Materials and Manufacturing Processes
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Active Duty
  • Air Force
  • Airborne Warning And Control System
  • Base Closures
  • Cold War
  • Control Systems
  • Department Of Defense
  • Force Structure
  • International Organizations
  • Iraqi-War
  • Marine Corps
  • Military Organizations
  • National Security
  • Personnel Management
  • Stability Operations
  • United States
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Personnel Management and Statistics in the Military and Department of Defense
  • Public Financial Management and Budgeting
  • Strategic Security Studies