An Open Letter on BRAC
CSIS experts Todd Harrison, Kathleen Hicks, Andrew Hunter, Mark Cancian, and Raymond DuBois recently signed an open letter calling on members of Congress to authorize a round of Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC).
Topic: Reform
Read the most recent CSIS research on defense reform efforts.
Defense Reform in a New Administration
As the President-elect has indicated since winning the election, defense reform is likely to remain a high priority in the new administration. Decisions that the new administration make over the coming years will shape the future military. This analysis provides recommendations that should be considered for reforming the defense budget.
Use a Strategic Review to Drive Change
Given the various foreign policy and national security challenges, it will be critical that the new administration develop a strategic approach for their policy objectives. Strategy will help the new administration achieve goals, drive change, and determine which issues may benefit from continuity. This analysis provides recommended steps for an effective review process to help develop a strategy for national security challenges.
Time to Revive Congressional War Powers
With the expansion of presidential war powers and an incoming administration, Congress is in an ideal position to reconsider the appropriate relationship with the executive branch on the use of force. This report provides a recommendation Congress should consider to re-establishing Congress’ role in authorizing military operations.
Making Innovation Great
Both nation-state and non-government adversaries will increasingly confront the U.S. with new capabilities to gain warfighting advantages. How can the Department of Defense foster acquisition innovation for effective change in areas that require rapid change?
Implementing Security Cooperation Reform to Maximize U.S. Competitiveness Abroad
Security cooperation enables the United States to deepen its global alliances and partnerships in pursuit of common security objectives. It will be critical to ensure FY17 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) reform provisions retains the U.S. competitive advantage globally through its network of alliances and partnerships. This analysis provides recommendations for the Trump administration to consider during security cooperation reform.
Reforming the Civilian Workforce: Two Carrots and Two Sticks
President-elect Donald Trump has proposed two goals for the federal government’s civilian workforce: making it smaller and increasing its quality. How can the administration use both carrots and sticks to achieve its goal of reducing the civilian workforce without going to war without its own work force? This analysis addresses this question through the lens of the civilian workforce in the Department of Defense to propose recommended changes.
Civilian Control of the Armed Forces
On Tuesday, January 10, Dr. Kathleen H. Hicks, senior vice president, Henry A. Kissinger Chair, and director of the International Security Program at CSIS, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee on civilian control of the armed forces. Click here to access written testimony or to view a full recording of the hearing.
Making Innovation Great
The Defense Department has historically provided investment to help develop systems for its specialized needs. However the investment creates limitations in the defense market and as a result, it impacts innovation. This analysis outlines the challenges and provides recommendations to promote innovation in the defense market.
National Security Reform: What Happened in Congress?
On December 23, 2016, President Obama signed the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY 2017. The act makes more changes to national security organizations and process than any other legislation since the landmark Goldwater–Nichols act of 1986. This report looks at the NDAA outcome issue-by-issue to see what it means for a new administration.