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CRS Report: Organizing the U.S. Government for National Security- Overview of the Interagency Reform Debates
Date: December 2008
Author: Catherine Dale, Nina M. Serafino, Pat Towell
Institution: Congressional Research Service
Bibliographic Entry: Dale, Catherine, Nina M. Serafino and Pat Towell. “CRS Report: Organizing the U.S. Government for National Security- Overview of the Interagency Reform Debates.” Congressional Research Service. (December 2008).
http://opencrs.com/document/RL34455
Electronic Link:
http://opencrs.com/document/RL34455
Key Words: national security, global strategic context, national security strategy, national power, 21st century security challenges, 111th Congress
Summary of Key Points, Issues, Conclusions:
A growing community of interest, including Members of Congress, senior officials in the executive branch, and think-tank analysts, is calling for a reexamination of how well the U.S. government is organized to apply all instruments of national power to national security activities. The framework used today to formulate strategy, support presidential decision-making, plan and execute missions, and budget was designed to address a very different global strategic context: a bipolar world with a single peer competitor state, the Soviet Union, which was driven by an expansionist ideology and back by a massive military force. Doubts about the adequacy of the system to meet 21st century security challenges have been catalyzed by recent operational experiences, including Operation Iraqi Freedom, operation Enduring Freedom, and responses to Hurricane Katrina. The purpose of this report is to help frame the emerging debates for the 111th Congress by taking note of the leading advocates for change, highlighting identified shortcomings in key elements of the current system, and describing categories of emerging proposals for change.
Name of Researcher: Natalie Prendergast
Institution: Integrative Center for Homeland Security, Texas A&M University
Date Posted: February 9, 2009