Dr. Mark Sherry’s The Army Command Post and Defense Reshaping, 1987–1997, examines this tumultuous period in depth. The author relates how the efforts of Army leaders to develop options for change were soon overtaken by actions of the Office of the Secretary of Defense and Joint Chiefs of Staff regarding Army size, structure, and missions. Strengthened by the 1986 Goldwater-Nichols reorganization act, the Joint Chiefs led the way, exerting an unprecedented degree of power in reshaping Defense Department policies and postures. Sherry first considers the Army’s studies and recommendations before tackling the higher level initiatives that followed, culminating in the Bottom-up Review and finally the first Quadrennial Defense Review. These Defense Department studies quickly overshadowed all Army reshaping efforts and seized the initiative for defense transformation
Foreword vii
Preface ix
The Author xii
Chapter 1. Introduction 1
The Situation Before the Goldwater-Nichols Act 2
2. Antaeus and the New Paradigm, 1987–1989 15
The Strategic Setting After the Goldwater-Nichols Act 16
Readiness and Force Modernization Issues 20
Catalysts for Change 21
Antaeus 24
Contingency Operations 32
3. The Cold War Ends, 1989–1990 37
Quicksilver 38
Vanguard 41
The Base Force 45
4. Toward a New Strategy, 1989–1990 59
The Defense Management Review 59
The Gulf War 63
Development of a New Strategy 66
Reconstituting the Army 71
Base Realignment and Closure 73
HQDA Redesign, 1992 75
The 1992 Roles and Missions Study 78
5. Change from Above 81
The Bottom-Up Review, 1993 81
The Commission on Roles and Missions, 1994–1995 91
iv 6. The Army Responds 103
New Contingencies 103
The Modern Louisiana Maneuvers 108
Force XXI 111
7. The Quadrennial Defense Review, 1996–1997 119
Changing National Military Strategy 120
Army Preparations for the Quadrennial Defense Review 122
Joint Staff Quadrennial Defense Review Plans 130
The Review Begins 133
Results 141
8. Two Final Reviews, 1997–1998 151
The National Defense Panel 151
The Task Force on Defense Reform 159
9. Conclusion 165
Goldwater-Nichols 165
Early Reshaping 167
Toward a New Strategy 173
Process and Progress 174
Toward a New Century 175
Epilogue179
