In this tenth volume of the Secretaries of Defense Historical Series, historian Edward C. Keefer details Caspar Weinberger’s role in orchestrating the largest peacetime military buildup in U.S. history and the consequential military engagements of the Cold War’s last decade. President Reagan’s choice of Weinberger as secretary of defense was paradoxical, given his reputation as “Cap the Knife,” a ruthless budget cutter for Governor Reagan in California and for President Nixon in Washington. Reagan hoped that Weinberger would lead a cost-effective military expansion by trimming fat and increasing efficiency. Instead, he sheathed his budget knife and prioritized the buildup. The military services enjoyed record budgets, the U.S. defense industry posted record profits, and even the average service member saw increased pay and expanded training. Efficiency and fiscal moderation, however, took a back seat.
Foreword xiii
Preface xv
Acknowledgments xxv
Chapter 1 Caspar Weinberger’s Journey to the Pentagon 1
Chapter 2 The Pentagon Team and Relationships within the Reagan Administration 27
Chapter 3 The Buildup Budgets: Fiscal Years 1981, 1982, and 1983 65
Chapter 4 Confronting the Soviets: estimates of Military Power, Crisis in Poland, and Reassessments of technology transfer and trade embargoes 93
Chapter 5 Weinberger and Soviet-American Nuclear Arms Reduction Negotiations 127
Chapter 6 Defense acquisition reform and Pentagon Reorganization 165
Chapter 7 The North Atlantic Treaty Organization 193
Chapter 8 The Middle East: Israel, Egypt, and Jordan 233
Chapter 9 Lebanon: Into the Cauldron 271
Chapter 10 The Persian Gulf and Southwest Asia 311
Chapter 11 The Falklands/Malvinas War and Weinberger as “Assistant Quartermaster” 343
Chapter 12 Defending the Defense Budget: Fiscal Years 1984–1986 373
Chapter 13 National Security and Strategic Forces Modernization 403
Chapter 14 Grenada: Operation Urgent Fury 449
Chapter 15 Central America, Cuba, and South America 473
Chapter 16 Libya, Worldwide Terrorism, and Africa 511
Chapter 17 The All-Volunteer Force 551
Chapter 18 East Asia and Southeast Asia 583
Chapter 19 Weinberger’s Legacy 623
Maps, Charts, Tables and Diagrams
Senior military officials, foreign policy decision-makers, Congressional officials who are engaged in Department of Defense oversight, educators and students of U.S. military history, Veterans, and historians.
