Obama Administration’s 21st Century Military: Sufficient for the 21st Century?

November 4^th, 2008 will be remembered in history as the day Barack Obama was elected as the first African-merican President of the United States of America. People throughout the nation and even the world will remember where they were and what their initial reaction was the moment he was projected to win. But then they will also remember what they had been going through at the time – the world is in the biggest financial crisis in seventy years, the U.S. has been making fragile progress in two difficult wars, and the world had just simply become too unpredictable. They finally saw a new leader of the free world who has inspired millions around the world with his charisma and words. They now have to see if he can actually lead people out of all these real-life chaos. Economy was the top concern on the voters’ minds, and the President-elect has made this as his top priority. Nevertheless, the new president should also keep in his mind that he is also the new Commander-in-Chief during the most difficult wartime in the nation’s history yet, while American ideals and leadership have been largely undermined both domestically and internationally. President-elect Obama has promised to rebuild America’s defense into the “21^st century military”, following with solid ideas during his campaign. Now, he should work on keeping his commitments as the next great leader of the 21^st century.

President-elect Obama has had no previous military experience, and also had been continuously charged by his rival war hero candidate Senator John McCain as too “naïve” and therefore “not ready”. The same charge has been made by even Senator Joe Biden during primaries before eventually becoming his running mate. It is true that Obama’s record on national security policy is little. Therefore, during his campaign, Obama put an effort to formulate his defense and foreign policy agendas. He has tried to assert he will become both a strong and careful commander-in-chief at the same time. One of the earliest previews of his foreign policy agendas was his speech at Chicago Council of Global Affairs in April 2007, where he first coined the term “21^st century military”. Then he elaborated on the “21^st century military” in the July/August 2007 edition of Foreign Affairs. Here are the excerpts of his main views from the article:

“…to renew American leadership in the world, we must immediately begin working to revitalize our military. A strong military is, more than anything, necessary to sustain peace…I will not hesitate to use force, unilaterally if necessary, to protect the American people or our vital interests whenever we are attacked or imminently threatened…We must also consider using military force in circumstances beyond self-defense in order to provide for the common security that underpins global stability -- to support friends, participate in stability and reconstruction operations, or confront mass atrocities.”

To show his strong side, he added specific plans including “adding 65,000 soldiers to the army and 27,000 marines”, “foreign languages” as one of the skills provided to the people in uniform, and “to commit sufficient funding to enable the National Guard to regain a state of readiness”. On the Air Force note, Obama did call for spending enormous amount of money on the new UAVs, improve electronic warfare capabilities, and building more C-17 cargo planes and KC-X refueling tankers for America’s “future ability to extend its global power” in his speech in Chicago. He overall also promised to provide necessary equipments, trainings, and other resources to those all in the service.

Then to show his wise side, he also mentioned that when he is sending troops in their harm’s way, he will “clearly define the mission, prescribe concrete political and military objectives, seek out advice of our military commanders, evaluate the intelligence, plan accordingly, and ensure that our troops have the resources, support, and equipment they need to protect themselves and fulfill their mission.” He also would garner support from the U.S. allies and use diplomacy along with armed forces in order to succeed. Few stances have been changed throughout the campaign, and they’ve been all laid out to the public, including in his website. If he follows through on all of his proposals, the U.S.’s defense is likely to be revitalized and strong again.

However, there are some concerns and criticisms towards Obama’s defense plans, especially on his pledge to cut spending on “missile defense systems”, “slowing or suspending the development of future combat systems”, and “not weaponize space”. Certain critics believe these plans “threaten foreign policy consequences inimical to American interests, and would pose perilous problems for some of our key allies around the world”. Then in order to meet all these plans of rebuilding the military, the defense spending has to be either increased or stay the same. But one Democrat House member has already called for 25% in overall defense spending, and probably more members will join him. The situation in Iraq is getting more unpredictable although the US and Iraqi government have recently agreed on withdrawal of American troops by 2011. The situation in Afghanistan is “not going in the right direction” according to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Michael Mullen. Then Russia and China are mobilizing their own military to challenge the U.S. superiority. Therefore, President-elect Obama should stick to its original position and look for other ways to improve the economy without negatively impacting the defense budget.

President-elect Obama has recently proven his determination for national security when he has selected Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates to keep the job and a retired Marine general James L. Jones as his National Security Advisor. Both men have distinguished records and credentials on years of service and leadership, and Obama has selected them based on merits, not political affiliation. Not only that but he has already spoken with the Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff, Director of National Intelligence, and former experts from both the Democratic and Republican administrations as well. This is certainly a positive start but the new president must continue to be both strong and wise throughout his administration regardless of the condition. When President Obama takes office in January 20^th, it will be remembered as a historical day for some reason, but it should be remembered especially as the day when America re-emerged as the leader and protector of freedom and peace in the 21^st century.