The Heritage Foundation Releases It’s “2015 Index of U.S. Military Strength”

STALLION TAKEOFF

An MH-53 Sea Stallion helicopter takes off from the flight deck of amphibious assault ship USS America in the Pacific Ocean, Feb. 23, 2015. The America is conducting maritime operations off the coast of California and the ship is optimized for Marine Corps aviation. U.S. Navy photo by Airman John Kelvin Chavez

Breaking Defense: Heritage: US Can Barely Handle Two MRCs; All But Air Force ‘Marginal’

WASHINGTON: The conservative Heritage Foundation has published an ambitious Index of Military Strength, which — not surprisingly — finds that the United States military is not beefy enough to manage the many threats it faces around the world.

The core finding of the well-written analysis is that the US military could handle two major theater wars at the same time — but only just. The old two Major Regional Contingency (MRC) standard dates back to the Cold War, and it took the Pentagon a long time to admit it wasn’t really either rational or doable as a strategic goal. The most recent Quadrennial Defense Review set a strategic goal of creating forces able to win one major theater war and to “hold” an “opportunistic” attacker instead of winning two major theater wars.

Here’s the logic laid out by Dakota Wood, author of the Heritage study:

More News On The Heritage Foundation's “2015 Index of U.S. Military Strength”

U.S. military decimated under Obama, only ‘marginally able’ to defend nation -- Washington Times
Report: US Military Capabilities Are Surprisingly Weak -- Daily Caller
U.S. Military No Longer Able to Fight Two Wars at Same Time -- Washington Free Beacon
Heritage Study Notes Rising Threats, ‘Marginal’ U.S. Military Power to Counter Them -- Seapower
New Heritage Foundation Study Ranks U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Strength as ‘Marginal’ -- USNI
Heritage Foundation Jumps Into Defense Budget Debate -- Sandra I. Erwi, National Defense

A Look At Who May Replace U.S. Secretary Of Defense Hagel

Top Candidates To Succeed Hagel Are Longtime National Security Specialists -- New York Times

WASHINGTON — President Obama, working to shift his team’s focus in confronting a raft of national security crises, is considering two former Defense Department officials as successors to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, administration officials said Monday.

Even before Mr. Obama appeared with Mr. Hagel at the White House to announce the Pentagon chief’s departure, officials inside and outside the administration were speculating that Michèle A. Flournoy, a former under secretary of defense who would be the first woman to head the Pentagon, and Ashton B. Carter, a former deputy secretary of defense, would be top candidates for the job.

Both are seasoned national security professionals whose credibility among members of both parties and Defense Department experience would be considered assets in managing the threat from the Islamic State, budget cuts and other challenges.

Read more .....

More News On Who May Replace U.S. Secretary Of Defense Hagel

Possible SECDEF replacements for Hagel -- Military Times
Five candidates to replace Hagel -- The Hill
3 People Who Could Replace Outgoing Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel -- ABC News
Chuck Hagel’s Replacement: The Top Possibilities -- Heavy.com
Who Will Replace Chuck Hagel? -- Roll Call
Who Will Replace Chuck Hagel As Secretary Of Defense? Michele Flournoy, Robert Work and Ashton Carter Leading Candidates -- IBTimes
3 People Who Could Replace Chuck Hagel -- Time
Who could step up to replace Hagel? -- Susan Crabtree, Washington Examiner
Candidate to replace Hagel is former Pentagon insider -- FDL Reporter
Could Obama choose a woman as next Defense secretary? One name tops list -- Anna Mulrine, CSM
Hagel’s Successor Could Be First Female Pentagon Chief -- DoD Buzz
Candidate to replace Hagel is former Pentagon insider -- USA Today
Hagel Replacement: Senate Fight Likely Over Obama Nominee For Defense -- IBTimes
The Battle Over Hagel’s Replacement For Defense Secretary Has Already Begun in Congress -- Molly O'Toole, Defense One
Chuck Hagel’s replacement must be cautious -- Eugene Robinson, Washington Post

Lockdown Lifted At Fort Lee After U.S. Soldier Shoots Herself

Photo: Army Recruiting via Flickr

Female Soldier Shoots Self, Sparks Lockdown At Fort Lee, Virginia -- Chicago Tribune

A female soldier shot and wounded herself at Fort Lee, Virginia, on Monday, sparking a lockdown of the Army installation, the base said on its Facebook page.

The soldier turned the weapon on herself inside the Combined Arms Support Command Headquarters and fired one shot, the statement said. Her condition was unknown.

The base, about 100 miles south of Washington, was locked down at about 9 a.m. EDT after a report of a shooter, the base said. An all clear was issued about 50 minutes later.

The shooting is under investigation, the statement said.

Read more ....

More News On The Lockdown Being Lifted At Fort Lee After A U.S. Soldier Shoots Herself

Fort Lee: Soldier wounded after shooting herself -- Richmond Times Dispatch
All-clear at army base, female soldier shoots herself -- Miami Herald/McClatchy News
Army: Shooter injured self, no others on Va. base -- AP
All clear at Army's Fort Lee after 'active shooter incident' -- CNN
Female soldier shoots self in possible suicide bid at Fort Lee -- New York Daily News
Shooter at US army base injures herself -- Al Jazeera
Ft. Lee shooter: Soldier turned gun on herself, early reports say -- L.A. Times

Who Serves In The U.S. Military (22 Charts)

(Click on Image to Enlarge)

These 22 Charts Reveal Who Serves In America's Military -- Business Insider

Even as the Pentagon plans significant troop reductions, the U.S. Armed Forces remain by far the most powerful and most expensive military in the world.

But who makes up America's over 1.3 million active personnel and its over 800,000 reserves, and how is the composition of the military changing?

To answer these questions, we turned primarily to data from a 2012 Department of Defense report.

Read more ....

My Comment: There are a number of cool graphs/charts here. Check it out.