Budgeting for the Nation's Defense Following the End of National Conflicts
Abstract
The purpose of this thesis is to examine the primary factors influencing the defense budgeting decisions of the Truman and Bush '41 Administrations. In particular, the thesis examines events following the end of the World War II and the Cold War. This examination and analysis should be of interest for the Obama Administration due to the many apparent parallels between these administrations. Like the Obama Administration, Truman and Bush faced an uncertain threat environment, economic concerns including inflation and high employment, and the challenge of navigating the nation through the end of a war. By understanding how these factors influenced each respective administration, Obama can better construct tomorrow's defense budgets. There are four primary budget models, tied closely with environmental factors, which help explain the defense budget decisions made by the previous administrations. These four models include the historical, threat, economy, and strategy-based methods. Depending on the context, each of these factors and models pull or attempt to loosen the nation's purse strings. Concerns with the economy consistently pull the purse strings close, while the nation's threat perceptions justified defense expenditures. The nation's geopolitical goals and strategies can influence defense budgets in either direction. The historical model is the most dependent on context. The nation's behavior and defense budget can gain its own momentum, thereby influencing the process. Prior to World War II, the nation's cultural norm was to maintain a small military force; therefore, the nation quickly demobilized and cut defense funding at the end of the nation's conflicts. In the aftermath of the Cold War, it appears the nation's culture norm was transformed and the nation relied on its military to create jobs and export democracy throughout the world.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 2009
- Accession Number
- ADA540453
Entities
People
- Craig A. Harding
Organizations
- Air University