With just four days under his belt, the Pentagon's new head of acquisition is sifting through the massive job ahead of him and establishing a to-do list that includes reviews of major procurements.
Ashton Carter, who was sworn in as the undersecretary of Defense for acquisition, technology and logistics on Monday, said Thursday that much of what would have been his first order of duty was accomplished during the lead-up to Defense Secretary Robert Gates' release of the department's budget request in early April. Gates recommended major changes in the Pentagon's procurement priorities, including cuts to a number of programs.
Nonetheless, Carter said examining troubled programs and acting on Gates' plan is his first priority. The new acquisition chief plans to review all the department's projects gradually to ensure they are being properly executed.
His second focus will be on logistics, an area he said sometimes is overlooked. With two ongoing wars and a major shift in combat operations, Carter said, attention to logistics will be crucial.
"What's ringing in my ears is the secretary of Defense's often-expressed frustration that the troops are at war but the building as a whole is not," Carter said. "I don't want him to feel that way about his acquisition operation and logistics operation."
Among the greatest challenges will be refocusing resources from Iraq to Afghanistan in President Obama's timeframe.
"We have quite a lot of stuff to move out of Iraq and into Afghanistan ... that's a non-trivial matter both to conceive and to execute, and we can't afford not to meet those timetables," Carter said.
Acquisition reform will be another priority, he noted. Carter already is looking into the appropriate role of contractors "from Blackwater security in theater to pink badges at the Pentagon" and said he wants to improve the government's ability to acquire products quickly.
Presidential and congressional interest in reforms will be an asset, he said.
"If it is going to be different than other efforts at acquisition reform, it's going to be because of that constellation of people who are interested in taking some risk to do things differently if they can see the payoff," Carter said.
By CONGRESSDAILY STAFF
The Senate confirmed Ashton Carter to be the Pentagon's top weapons buyer on a voice vote Thursday night. Carter's nomination to become the assistant secretary of Defense for acquisition, technology and logistics had been stalled by Alabama's two Republican senators over concerns about the competition for aerial refueling tankers. Sens. Jeff Sessions and Richard Shelby lifted their holds after they received assurances from Carter and Defense Secretary Robert Gates that the Pentagon is committed to a fair and open competition for the tanker.
Northrop Grumman Corp. and EADS, the European consortium behind Airbus, had planned to build the Air Force tanker in Mobile, Ala., after winning the lucrative contract last year. GAO ultimately upheld a protest filed by Boeing Co., the losing bidder, and the Pentagon decided to reopen the competition. Defense officials have said they expect to restart the competition this year, with a contract award early next year. "I recognize the need for the secretary to have a confirmed acquisition chief to move the tanker replacement process forward," Shelby said in a statement.
By ROBERT BRODSKY, Government Executive
Bush administration political appointees at the Defense Department have until the end of the week to sign President Obama's ethics pledge, or they will be asked to resign, according to internal correspondence.
In an April 7 e-mail, Robert Rangel, special assistant to Defense Secretary Robert Gates, gave all Bush holdovers until the close of business on Friday to sign the agreement, which puts restrictions on post-government employment.
Politicos who refuse to comply will be required to leave their position by the end of April.
"Those who choose not to sign the ethics pledge and leave before April 30, 2009 (or those who choose to sign the pledge and are replaced after April 30, 2009), will be asked to submit their resignations, and the department will treat their separations as involuntary," Rangel wrote.
Continue reading DoD Gives Ethics Ultimatum To Bush Holdovers.
By CONGRESSDAILY STAFF
Citing concerns over the upcoming competition for the lucrative contract to build aerial refueling tankers for the Air Force, Alabama's two Republican senators are blocking the confirmation of Ashton Carter, the Obama administration's nominee to be the Pentagon's top weapons buyer.
A team led by Northrop Grumman and EADS, the European consortium behind Airbus, won the contract last year and planned to build the tankers in Alabama. But GAO upheld a protest filed by Boeing Co., the losing bidder, forcing the Pentagon to announce another competition for aircraft.
"It is of the utmost importance that the new tanker competition be conducted in an open and transparent manner based on a best value process," Sen. Richard Shelby said in a statement today. "Before the new request for proposals is issued, we should have every assurance from Dr. Carter that the Department of Defense will proceed fairly to ensure our warfighters receive the most capable tanker possible."
Sen. Jeff Sessions also issued a statement saying he has "unanswered questions" about Carter's commitment to holding a fair and open competition. Senate Armed Services Chairman Carl Levin, D-Mich., whose panel voted Wednesday to back Carter's confirmation, postponed plans to have the Senate vote late Thursday after Shelby told him he wanted to speak with Carter about his concerns.
"He has made a commitment that he will do so as quickly as he possibly can after the recess so we can hopefully get to this nomination very promptly," Levin said of Shelby.
By BRIAN FRIEL
Defense contractors enjoyed robust growth in business over the past decade as both the Clinton and Bush Pentagons converted tens of thousands of jobs from government employees to contractor personnel.
But as the Obama administration looks for ways to reduce growth in the defense budget, the Pentagon is eyeing those contractor jobs as targets. At a House Budget Committee hearing this morning, Chairman John Spratt, D-S.C., asked the Pentagon's top accountant why the defense budget has grown so much faster than inflation over the past decade.
Robert Hale, the Defense Department comptroller, told Spratt that those outsourced contractor jobs have ended up being more expensive than government workers. Now the Pentagon is looking at bringing some of those contractor jobs back in-house, Hale said. We "need to look carefully at how many contractors we're using," Hale said.
On the campaign trail, Barack Obama promised to cut all federal contractor spending by at least 10 percent and end the abuse of no-bid contracts.
President Obama announced today he will nominate Jim Miller as principal deputy undersecretary for policy and Lt. Gen. Wallace "Chip" Gregson Jr. as assistant secretary for Asian and Pacific security affairs within the Department of Defense.
Miller is a former academic, House Armed Services Committee staffer and deputy assistant secretary of Defense for requirements, plans, and counterproliferation.
Gregson is a retired general who commanded Marine forces in the Pacific. He has also served as COO of the U.S. Olympic Committee.
The White House also announced today that a number of Defense Department employees will retain their positions. Mike Donley will stay on as Air Force Secretary, Lt. Gen. James R. Clapper as undersecretary of Defense for intelligence and Michael G. Vickers as assistant secretary of Defense for special operations/low intensity conflict and interdependent capabilities.
Full biographies of Miller, Gregson, Donley, Clapper and Vickers, per the White House press office, follow after the jump.
Continue reading More DOD Appointments, Holdovers Announced.
By KATHERINE MCINTIRE PETERS, Government Executive
Anyone looking for a clue as to how Defense Secretary Robert Gates may pursue his responsibilities under the Obama administration should pick up the January issue of Foreign Affairs magazine. In an article titled "A Balanced Strategy: Reprogramming the Pentagon for a New Age," Gates spells out his thinking on issues from the war in Iraq to modernization plans.
"To fail -- or to be seen to fail -- in either Iraq or Afghanistan would be a disastrous blow to U.S. credibility, both among friends and allies and among potential adversaries," Gates writes, dispelling any notion that he might support a speedy withdrawal of troops from Iraq if such reductions mean worsening security there.
"In Iraq, the number of U.S. combat units there will decline over time -- as it was going to do no matter who was elected president in November," he writes. "Still, there will continue to be some kind of a U.S. advisory and counterterrorism effort in Iraq for years to come."
With the Pentagon gearing up to conduct its next Quadrennial Defense Review -- a broad examination of how the services are structured and equipped to meet emerging challenges -- Gates' essay provides a sense of the direction the review is likely to take.
The bulk of Gates' concerns center on military modernization. He notes that higher defense spending will not eliminate national security risks, and says entrenched support for conventional modernization programs at the Pentagon, in industry and Congress is problematic.
Continue reading Gates Outlines Commitment To Military Reform.
(Credit: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images)
Atlantic Media Political Director Ronald Brownstein spoke with former National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski for today's edition of "National Journal On Air." During the course of their conversation, Brzezinski touched on the incoming foreign policy team, controlling weapons of mass destruction and Obama's global popularity.
Related: Carter Official Jody Powell Rates Clinton Pick
NJ: President-elect Obama this week named the key members of his national security team: Hillary Clinton, Robert Gates and General Jim Jones. What was your assessment of the team he pulled together?
Brzezinski: I think it's a very strong team in terms of individual capabilities and personal experience. Each one adds an important dimension to our ability to handle foreign affairs. But there is, I think, a potential problem, namely, because they're such strong individuals there could be some problems with coordination, especially since in some respects both the new secretary of State and the retained secretary of Defense have had different perspectives in foreign policy issues than the president-elect. So a great deal depends on the degree to which the president, working through the national security adviser, General Jones, can impose a sense of direction, can impose central strategic control over the shaping of foreign policy.
NJ: You know, one thing that's interesting about this team is that unlike many presidents, he has not chosen long-time confidantes for any of these three positions. I mean, none of these three are people that he has spent enormous time with over the years or were in the foxhole with him, as it were, in the campaign. Is that a challenge?
Brzezinski: Well, first of all it's understandable, because he hasn't been dealing with foreign affairs. His associates have not been really concerned with foreign affairs. His political associates have been concerned with his political career in Illinois and then nationally, and his focus has been largely on domestic issues. But it is a problem. Sure, it is a problem, and that's why he compensates for it by having strong individuals who presume to know something about these subjects and a very strong national security adviser in our former NATO commander and Marine Corps commandant who should be able to crack the whip.
Read the complete interview here.
If you wanted to propose the most significant changes in the U.S. national security architecture in half a century, James Locher III would be a logical choice to lead the effort. A key architect of the Goldwater-Nichols defense reforms of the 1980s, Locher went on to cajole warring factions in the Balkans to embrace a joint national security system. As executive director of the Project on National Security Reform, Locher this week unveiled a blueprint for a revamped 21st-century national security system. He recently spoke with National Journal's James Kitfield. Edited excerpts from that interview follow. Visit the archives page for more Insider Interviews.
NJ: With so many burning crises already in their inbox, why would a new Obama administration and Congress want to undertake fundamental national security reforms?
Locher: Well, I think Republicans and Democrats alike agree that the system is broken, and that makes people receptive to change. They watched the 9/11 attacks, and the problems the United States encountered in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the botched response to Hurricane Katrina. All of those setbacks are not coincidental. They have organizational root causes. And if we don't address those causes and adjust a badly misaligned national security structure, we'll continue to suffer major setbacks time after time.
NJ: What do you consider the root cause of those failures?
Locher: In simple terms, the challenges we confront in the 21st century are horizontal problems whose solutions require collaborative work across the government. Yet we're trying to deal with those challenges with a government that is vertically oriented into stove-piped agencies and departments. The boundaries between those agencies are non-permeable, rigid and bureaucratic. There are powerful incentives designed into the system that reinforce an inward-looking culture where people are not rewarded for putting the national interest above the agency interest. In fact, mavericks who do so often put their careers at risk.
By TOM SHOOP, Government Executive
Defense Secretary Robert Gates may have agreed to stick around in the Obama administration, but that doesn't mean that other high-ranking Pentagon officials will remain in their jobs.
Deputy Defense Secretary Gordon England announced Tuesday that he will not continue serving with Gates under Obama.
"It's time for me to leave," England said. "When I came into government in early 2001, I anticipated serving for two to four years. After almost eight years, it's now time for me to turn over the reins to a successor. Also, it's most appropriate for the new administration to name its own deputy."
England, of course, oversaw the Pentagon's efforts to implement the controversial National Security Personnel System for its civilian employees -- and, most recently, its decision to drop plans to convert employees represented by labor unions to the system.
By AMY HARDER
Following in the wake of last week's Mumbai terrorist attacks, President-elect Barack Obama announced his national security team at a press conference this morning in Chicago. With unrest between India and Pakistan rising over the weekend, Obama addressed the situation briefly but declined to comment further when pressed by a reporter.
"This is one of those times that I reiterate that there is one president at a time," the president-elect said. "We will be engaged in delicate diplomacy in the next several days and weeks. It would be inappropriate for me to comment, but what I can so unequivocally is that both myself and the team that stands beside are absolutely committed eliminating the threat of terrorism."
That team includes several appointments that had been rumored for weeks -- Hillary Rodham Clinton as secretary of State, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Eric Holder as attorney general, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano as Homeland Security Department secretary, Obama's campaign foreign policy adviser Susan Rice as ambassador to the United Nations and Gen. Jim Jones as national security adviser.
After announcing Clinton as his secretary of State, Obama was asked about "belittling" her international experience while on the campaign trial. "This is fun for the press to try to stir up whatever quotes were formed over the course of the campaign," Obama quipped in response. "If you look at statements that [Clinton] and I have made outside of the heat of the campaign, we share a view that America has to be safe and secure." He added that in making his decision, he never experienced a "light bulb moment"; rather, once their primary battle was over, he started thinking of ways they could work together.
Continue reading Obama Stresses Pragmatism Of Security Appointees.
(Credit: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images)
The Obama-Biden transition team this morning made official several key appointments, confirming reports that the president-elect was seeking Hillary Rodham Clinton as secretary of State, Eric Holder for attorney general and Robert Gates as secretary of Defense.
The team also confirmed that Arizona governor -- and early Obama endorser -- Janet Napolitano was Obama's pick for DHS chief, and named retired Gen. Jim Jones as national security adviser and Susan Rice as ambassador to the U.N. Combined with previously announced names, today's rollout brings the total number of announced picks from the Obama team to 42.
Check back shortly for coverage and video of Obama's press conference unveiling his national security team.
Complete release available after the jump.
Continue reading Clinton, Holder, Gates Officially Announced.
By AMY HARDER
More than 20 national security experts, including officials from the Homeland Security and Defense departments, will convene Wednesday and Thursday to discuss how President-elect Barack Obama's administration should confront the county's myriad domestic security issues.
Hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the two-day conference features six panels on topics such as disaster response, infrastructure protection, the National Guard's role and department oversight. Speakers include Paul McHale, assistant secretary of Defense for Homeland Defense and Americas' Security Affairs; Mike Hickey, vice president of Verizon and chair of the Communications Sector Coordinating Council; and Col. Leslie J. Carroll, deputy chief of staff for operations in the U.S. Army Reserve Command. A representative from the transition team at DHS will also be attending, although the specific person has not yet been confirmed.
Ethan Wais, a spokesman for CSIS, said he expects nearly 250 people to attend the conference, which has reached the maximum number of participants. NationalJournal.com will be covering the event at the CSIS office on K Street. Check back later this week for more.
By JAMES KITFIELD
Few experts in Washington are more steeped in their disciplines than arms control advocate Joseph Cirincione, the president of the Ploughshares Fund, the author of Bomb Scare: The History and Future of Nuclear Weapons, and an expert adviser to the Congressional Commission on the Strategic Posture of the United States, chaired by former Secretary of Defense William Perry and former Secretary of Energy and Defense James Schlesinger. Though he also served as an informal adviser to the Obama campaign, Cirincione stressed that the opinions shared in this interview are strictly his own.
NJ: Do you agree with those who argue that the Obama administration should move quickly to open negotiations with Russia on further reductions in nuclear arms, as he suggested during the campaign?
Cirincione: Absolutely. Transforming U.S. nuclear weapons policy would accomplish numerous goals for the new president. First, it would represent an early political victory, because there is now a broad, bipartisan consensus for fundamentally changing our nuclear posture. That includes drastically reducing the size of our nuclear arsenal, ratifying the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and reining in nuclear proliferation. Secondly, such an initiative would make our country more secure, not less. Finally, it would save tens of billions of dollars that could pay for some of the other military bills coming due.
NJ: You say there is a broad consensus, but aren't there still strong opponents in Congress for ratifying the CTBT and reducing our nuclear arsenal dramatically?
Cirincione: There is a core of between 20 to 25 percent of congressional Republicans on the very right who will go nuts over anything [Barack] Obama does to address our nuclear posture. The good news is there is somewhere between 75 to 80 percent of those in Congress who will support each of the steps I just outlined, including a significant number of more moderate Republicans. Remember, as a presidential candidate Senator John McCain also supported many of these same steps.
Continue reading President Obama Will Have Opening On Arms Initiatives.
By MEGAN SCULLY
Defense Department officials have prepared a "nonprescriptive" guidebook on military policy to hand over to the Obama administration, a senior Pentagon official said today. Eric Edelman, the undersecretary of Defense for policy, said it includes a timeline for the first 90 days of the new administration, as well as other information on the state-of-play of military issues, but no specific guidance on how incoming Pentagon officials should proceed. "In past transitions, I've seen a lot folks... try to say, 'Look, here's the policy and here's why you should keep it,'" Edelman said. "I think we've tried to be nonprescriptive." Edelman, who served in the Pentagon from 1990 to 1993, said the current transition efforts are "light years" ahead of the 1992 changeover.
The complete story is available on CongressDailyPM.
The Obama transition team this afternoon sent reporters a memo with the names of those they had tapped to review three key departments -- Treasury, State and Defense. These three departments are often cited as priorities for Barack Obama and his team.
The review teams, which will get to work by the end of this week, are tasked with keeping the larger transition effort up-to-date on the goings-on within these three massive departments, and help senior appointees navigate the confirmation process and hit the ground running once they're confirmed.
WASHINGTON -- The Obama-Biden Transition Team today announced the Agency Review Team leads for the Department of Treasury, Department of State, and Department of Defense. The Obama-Biden Transition Team also announced the Agency Review Team co-chairs, who will oversee the entire review process, as well as the Agency Review Working Group, which will manage and review the Teams' work and coordinate with other transition teams, including those handling personnel, policy and the budget.The Agency Review Teams will complete a thorough review of key departments, agencies and commissions of the United States government, as well as the White House, to provide the President-elect, Vice President-elect, and key advisors with information needed to make strategic policy, budgetary, and personnel decisions prior to the inauguration. The Teams will begin their efforts by the end of the week, and will ensure that senior appointees have the information necessary to complete the confirmation process, lead their departments, and begin implementing signature policy initiatives immediately after they are sworn in.
Complete release after the jump.
Continue reading Obama Team Turns To State, Defense, Treasury.
• "Obama wants to pick his foreign policy roster first, and then turn to substance.... Among the big questions are whether to ask Bob Gates to stay on as defense secretary or, if not, whether to appoint a prominent Republican, such as Sen. Richard Lugar or Sen. Chuck Hagel, as secretary of state. Either way, Obama wants a bipartisan team."
• "For national security adviser, Obama is likely to pick a pragmatist."
• "Obama wants to make an early push on the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, despite political turmoil in Israel."
• "On Iran, Obama wants to open the door to a process of engagement and dialogue, even though his advisers aren't confident it will succeed."
• "On Iraq and Afghanistan, Obama will listen carefully to advice from Gen. David Petraeus, the Centcom commander, and other military leaders before making decisions."
• "Beware of Reorganitus: You are about to be besieged by proposals to reorganize government."
• "About Harboring Loyalists: There are folks who have spent tremendous energy trying to advance your cause and now want jobs. It would be grand if they were all experienced in government management. But take note of the trail left by the friends of Jimmy Carter."
• "Take No for an Answer: You will find no shortage of applicants willing to sacrifice for high-salaried government jobs."
• "Know When to Fold: When a nomination is in trouble, count votes and move quickly if you don't have enough of them."
• "And One More Thing: Here's my last piece of gratuitous advice -- although it will be hotly challenged by Bill Clinton: Never give major public policy responsibility to someone you cannot fire."
Of all the challenges facing President-elect Obama between now and his inauguration, none are likely to be as consequential as ensuring that the nation's security and military operations aren't disrupted by the transition process. National Journal's James Kitfield spoke on Monday with a senior Defense Department official familiar with transition preparation, who was not authorized to speak on the record. Edited excerpts of their conversation follow.
Q: Given the fact that the next administration will inherit two wars, a global financial crisis and a still potent threat from international terrorists, do you see this transition as being a particularly vulnerable period?
A: In looking at the history of presidential transitions as part of our preparation, this is the first war-time transition since President [Lyndon] Johnson turned power over to President [Richard] Nixon in 1968. That's a historical fact worth noting. So at the Pentagon we're uniquely aware of the many present dangers that pose a threat not only to U.S. forces in places such as Iraq and Afghanistan, but also to the American homeland as well. In that sense, this transition between administrations will be a uniquely sensitive period. That's why we're doing everything in our power to make it as seamless a process as possible.
Q: What lessons have you learned from past presidential transitions?
A: In looking at what characterized successful transitions of the past, and what separated them from some less successful transitions in terms of national security, the need for the chairman of the Joint Chiefs to have an opportunity to really study and think through the issues well before the election stood out. That careful advanced preparation readies the chairman to give his best military advice to the new administration from day one. That's why the Joint Chiefs designated a transition team to begin that process and to start studying the issues last July. We wanted to get input from all the combatant commanders, and to prepare the chairman to offer his best advice to the new administration in a manner that doesn't shape or limit the policy options of the next administration.
Q: Why is it so important not to shape policy options?
A: Because while the chairman of the Joint Chiefs will offer his best military advice, we don't do policy. We do military operations in support of civilian policy initiatives. And it's certainly reasonable to assume there will be a shift in policies with a new administration. So we continue to track ongoing operations and anticipate how they might change as we adjust to the new policies of the next administration. That way the chairman of the Joint Chiefs can initiate a good discussion on those operations, give the risks associated with various courses of action and we'll all be ready to execute whatever policy the new administration decides on.
Q: That sounds very textbook, but can the Joint Chiefs really give their best military advice without trying to impact policy?
A: The situation we absolutely want to avoid is the chairman or Joint Staff meeting with the next administration's transition team for the first time and creating the impression that we're trying to shape the agenda or steer their decisions. We just can't afford to leave that impression. So we will be completely transparent in our actions, and as quickly as possible we want to show the next administration how best to utilize our capabilities and how best to interface with combatant commanders to guide policy in the direction they choose. Of course the chairman will offer his best military advice, and the next administration will be free to take it or leave it.
