‘Bob, How Do We Bottle This?’ Making Infantry As Good As Special Ops

‘Bob, How Do We Bottle This?’ Making Infantry As Good As Special Ops
‘Bob, How Do We Bottle This?’ Making Infantry As Good As Special Ops

Our elite close combat forces are outnumbered. As a national priority we must increase the numbers of those capable of doing these hazardous jobs by transferring the skills of JSOC warriors to Army and Marine conventional infantrymen.

Close Air Support Timeline Cut; Wait For Tech Was Too Long

Close Air Support Timeline Cut; Wait For Tech Was Too Long
Close Air Support Timeline Cut; Wait For Tech Was Too Long

For too long, the CAS program “was falling on deaf ears, because it didn’t quite fit exactly in somebody’s nice little picture of a program, and it wasn’t funded” within a traditional acquisition program.

What Will ‘Actually Solve’ Terrorism Problem?

What Will ‘Actually Solve’ Terrorism Problem?
What Will ‘Actually Solve’ Terrorism Problem?

This is the second of James Kitfield’s in-depth analysis of the continuing challenges posed by America’s so-called “forever wars” in Afghanistan and Iraq. At the height of its powers several years ago, ISIS was attracting an estimated one thousand new foreign fighters each month. While U.S. officials always believed that the U.S.-led coalition would take…

Hard Lessons from America’s Longest Wars

Hard Lessons from America’s Longest Wars
Hard Lessons from America’s Longest Wars

This is one of two pieces by our contributor James Kitfield, who’s won more Gerald Ford Defense Reporting awards than anyone else (3), on the challenges and mistakes America has made in grappling with the complex threat of global terrorism. As James puts it in his summary sentence: U.S. counterterrorism forces continue to learn and adapt…

Battle For Army’s Soul Resumes: Lessons From Army After Next

Battle For Army’s Soul Resumes: Lessons From Army After Next
Battle For Army’s Soul Resumes: Lessons From Army After Next

History never repeats, but it often rhymes, and a wise man listens to the echoes. Today, the Army is exploring a new concept of future combat called Multi Domain Battle, which calls for small, agile units designed to overwhelm the enemy with coordinated actions not only on the land, but in the air, on the sea,…

Trump’s Generals, Part 3: Mike Flynn vs. Al-Qaeda

Trump’s Generals, Part 3: Mike Flynn vs. Al-Qaeda
Trump’s Generals, Part 3: Mike Flynn vs. Al-Qaeda

Who are Trump’s generals? Earlier this week, James Kitfield showed us the common crucible that shaped as a group and then profiled James Mattis, the prospective Secretary of Defense. Today, Kitfield tackles Trump’s most controversial general, intelligence officer turned political firebrand Michael Flynn. “Know your enemy and know yourself, and you will not be defeated in…

What’s Eating Bill McRaven: Is Congress Too Ignorant Of The Military?

What’s Eating Bill McRaven: Is Congress Too Ignorant Of The Military?
What’s Eating Bill McRaven: Is Congress Too Ignorant Of The Military?

The US military is still at war but Washington is not. The resulting tensions are eroding the fundamental compact between America’s warrior and political classes. The recent op-ed by retired Adm. William McRaven, former head of Special Operations Command and the man who led the strike against Osama Bin Laden, might have caused a national furor…

Biometrics May Mean End Of The Spy’s Disguise

Biometrics May Mean End Of The Spy’s Disguise
Biometrics May Mean End Of The Spy’s Disguise

SOMEWHERE IN WASHINGTON: Spy movie makers love retinal scans and ever-more inventive ways to steal or modify fingerprints. Former CIA Director David Petraeus and the Joint Special Operations Command relied heavily on retinal scans, DNA sampling, fingerprints, facial and body recognition — all cross referenced with other intelligence — to build enormous cross-linked databases that helped track and…