The dominance of two services, the Army and the Navy, leading the geographic combatant commands is striking. Of the 80 geographic combatant commanders appointed since the National Security Act of 1947, 43 have come from the Army. The Navy follows with 26. The Marine Corps comes in third with 6, while the Air Force has had 5 selected. The Department of Defense should recognize the implications of a commander selection process that supports the domination of the geographic combatant commands by two of the four services. Continuing this practice stifles innovation by limiting the full exploration of ideas. The President, Secretary of Defense, and Congress should promote a paradigm for military leadership diversity that acknowledges service cultural differences and recognizes the value in those differences. Most significantly, the Department of Defense should internalize the perspectives of senior Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps leaders so the geographic combatant commands become more effective because of these differences. In turn, the services benefit by identifying more with the geographic combatant commands, setting in motion a virtuous cycle, which better serves the national interest.
This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.
This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.
As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.
