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Policy Blog
- COO Chris Calio Says Raytheon Technologies Is Proving The Value Of The Merger (From Forbes)
When Raytheon and United Technologies disclosed their intention to merge three years ago, they laid out a vision of a consolidated enterprise that would be nearly unstoppable in aerospace and defense. It did not take long for that vision to be tested: the new company had to integrate operations in the midst of a global pandemic. But as time goes [ Read More…]
- Merrick "Mac" Carey
- Jefferson’s Political Revolution
Thomas Jefferson was 33 years old when he wrote the Declaration of Independence, so it is probably too late for you and me to achieve such a notable level of fame. He also attempted, in his draft, to blast the British for bringing slavery to America, but the Southern delegates insisted on excising that language from our most important founding [ Read More…]
- John Cicchitti
- Beware Of Labor Pandering That Endangers National Security
During the Korean War, the United Steelworkers of America announced they planned to go on strike. Panic ripped through the Truman administration as it worried a strike would disrupt supplies of steel for weapons and munitions. The administration tried to find a compromise between steel companies and the union. The effort failed, and the strike’s start date inched closer. President [ Read More…]
- How HIMARS Rockets Can Help Turn The Tide In Ukraine (From Forbes)
The Biden administration disclosed in late May that it would share the U.S. Army’s High Mobility Artillery Rocket System with Ukraine. HIMARS, as it is usually called, is a super-accurate, highly survivable and reliable weapon with over twice the range of most conventional howitzers. It will greatly enhance the ability of Ukrainian forces to strike Russian tactical targets such as artillery emplacements, supply depots and the like. Ukraine has already begun using it to destroy Russian command centers previously beyond [ Read More…]
- GSA’s Power Grab Over DFTS Puts Critical Defense Transportation Contracts At Risk (From 19FortyFive)
For more than a decade, the Department of Defense (DoD) struggled to find the right contracting mechanism that would allow it to take advantage of the enormous logistics capabilities resident in the private sector. Third-party logistics providers have the experience, tools, databases, and procedures to support a network of transportation providers while minimizing both the cost and time involved in moving goods and materials. But just when the Pentagon got it right with its Defense Freight Transportation Services (DFTS) contract, the [ Read More…]
- U.S. Defense Companies Are World-Class Innovators. Why Doesn’t Washington Know That? (From Forbes)
It has become an article of faith among defense experts in both parties that defense companies, even the biggest ones, are not innovative. If you want something creative, the thinking goes, you should turn to Silicon Valley. However, the evidence suggests otherwise: big military contractors are among the most innovative enterprises in the world, because that is what their federal customer demands. So why doesn’t most of official Washington grasp that fact? Because the technologies involved are often arcane and [ Read More…]
- The New Arsenal Of Democracy: The U.S. Commercial High-Tech Industry’s Role In Countering The China Threat
The character of the international order is changing. These changes encompass all elements of national power – economic, technological, social/cultural, political, and military. The United States and its democratic friends and allies are facing a host of challenges to every dimension of their security. They are facing both traditional challenges, such as the proliferation of nuclear weapons, and new ones, such as the competition in advanced technologies.
- The U.S. Postal Service’s Insatiable Appetite For Taxpayers Dollars (From RealClearPolicy)
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) just got more than $100 million in taxpayer assistance through the Postal Service Reform Act, signed into law in April. It is licking its chops for billions more as Congressional Democrats and the Biden Administration work to serve up a smorgasbord of new programs and funding schemes. USPS is supposed to self-supporting and from 1970-2006, it was. With the recent assistance, it is important that USPS return to that operating model and that pushes for [ Read More…]
- JADC2 Will Require Automated Cybersecurity (From RealClearDefense)
The defense digital terrain is changing rapidly. The growth in defense networks and the systems on them is already explosive. This will increase exponentially with the introduction of the Joint All Domain Command and Control (JADC2) system. If successful, it will enable the creation and maintenance of a continually changing, even kaleidoscopic, constellation of endpoints involving the military Services, other government agencies, and coalition partners. Supported by sophisticated cloud environments and employing artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning tools, information [ Read More…]
- Political Games Empower Russian Cyberattacks (From InsideSources)
The United States faces an alarming and growing threat of cyberattacks from Russia. Some in Congress would compound these dangers by enacting legislation that would force America’s leading tech companies to allow access to their software, hardware, and operating systems to customers and competitors in the U.S. and overseas. Of particular concern is the American Innovation and Choice Online Act. While this measure has exceptions for access for potential cybersecurity threats, the language governing this is vague, and the enforcement [ Read More…]
- Five Reasons The Ukraine War Could Force A Rethink Of Washington’s Pivot To Asia (From Forbes)
The Pentagon’s pivot to Asia since the Obama years has been grounded in a belief that China is the greatest challenge to America’s global influence. However, the challenge presented by China in Asia is mainly economic and technological in character, whereas the challenge presented by Russia in Europe is now decidedly military in nature. It follows that Washington will need to think more expansively about how to posture its military for the long-term threat posed by Moscow. That would be [ Read More…]
- The Ukraine War Proves The U.S. Army Needs New Mobile 155mm Howitzers (From 1945)
Artillery may again become the King of Battle. The Russia-Ukraine conflict is turning into a brutal slugfest. Using tactics reminiscent of those employed in both World Wars, the Russian Army is relying on massive artillery barrages to drive back Ukrainian defenders along the Luhansk-Donetsk front. They are also using indirect fires to go after Ukrainian long-range fire systems. As a result, truck-mounted and self-propelled artillery systems and multiple rocket launchers have become the proverbial coin-of-the-realm for the Ukrainian Army. This should [ Read More…]
- House Strategic Forces Panel Warns Plan For Airborne Control Of Nuclear Weapons In Wartime Is Lagging (From Forbes)
The Strategic Forces Subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee is warning that Air Force plans to replace aging E-4B Nightwatch command-post aircraft are lagging. The four modified 747s would be used to command and control U.S. nuclear weapons in a war. In fact, they might be one of the few parts of the command-and-control system that survives the opening salvoes of an East-West war. Without them, it could prove impossible for the nation’s top leaders to retaliate against nuclear [ Read More…]