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Columnists
Gordon Adams
The Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review: Separating the U.S. civilian and defense missions
If the inaugural QDDR doesn't clearly focus the State Department's mission, it could create civilian capabilities focused on the military's mission--a serious step backward for national security.
Afghanistan and Pakistan: The graveyard for U.S. foreign policy planning?
The challenges and potential failures in Afghanistan and Pakistan could very well torpedo the comprehensive, cross-agency review of U.S. foreign assistance and development aid that's happening in Washington right now.
Strategic planning comes to the State Department
The State Department is about to conduct its first comprehensive review of U.S. foreign policy strategy and budget priorities--a transformational endeavor if State keeps in mind the following suggestions.
Budgeting for national security
It may seem as though President Obama is restraining defense spending, but he continues to let the Pentagon do his strategic security planning for him.
Evaluating the Obama administration's national security budget and planning process
Although it's still early, there are promising signs that the Obama administration is substantively changing the way the United States formulates and funds its national security policy.
Obama's first budget test
Barack Obama has vowed to stop out-of-control supplemental budget requests from the State and Defense departments. Here's how to evaluate whether he's keeping that promise.
Increasing the U.S. defense budget won't stimulate the economy
Despite what some experts say, allowing Pentagon spending to continue to grow at record levels won't solve Washington's current economic woes.
Obama's test: Bringing order to the national security policy process
There's much to fix in terms of how Washington crafts its foreign and national security policy. Here's how to grade the Obama administration's progress.
Establishing the next president's national security agenda: Strengthening the civilian instrument
Reforming U.S. development and foreign assistance institutions is essential to stave off the militarization of foreign policy and to remake overall U.S. security strategy.
Establishing the next president's national security agenda: How to confront the defense budget morass
Despite pressure from the Pentagon, either Barack Obama or John McCain must restrain military spending in order to return coherence and discipline to the defense planning process.
Establishing the next president's national security agenda: The role of the White House
It's incumbent upon either Barack Obama or John McCain to revamp how the White House offices formulate U.S. national security policy. Here's how they should do it.
Establishing the next president's national security agenda: Part I
Five significant challenges to national security will greet the new U.S. president in January--and each demands equal attention and a fresh approach.
Getting U.S. foreign assistance right
A new cabinet department dedicated exclusively to development will not cure what ails Washington’s foreign aid programs.
The true cost of U.S. defense spending
The Pentagon continues to ask for endless defense funding with little regard for the damage inflated budgets will do down the road.
New funds for foreign aid
The Bush administration finally recognizes that the United States cannot keep creating new assistance programs around the globe while cutting the staff we need to run them.
How much defense spending is enough?
Some defense analysts think Washington needs to continue spending money on the military at record levels. But it's an assertion unsupported by any strategy or need.
U.S. foreign policy and foreign assistance: The momentum for reform
Four recent reports outline ways in which Washington can fix the dysfunctional, underfunded civilian agencies that define and implement U.S. foreign policy and assistance activities.
A look at the 2008 defense budget
A historically large defense budget reflects more of the same: U.S. reliance on the military to solve all of Washington's security woes.
Profile
Gordon Adams
A professor of international relations at American University’s School of International Service, Adams also serves as a distinguished fellow at the Henry L. Stimson Center. His expertise is in U.S. national security policy and budget planning across the country’s security institutions--the Defense Department, State Department, and intelligence agencies among them. In 1983, he founded the Defense Budget Project (now the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments), a nonpartisan research center that analyzes defense economics and defense policy. From 1993 to 1997, he worked as the White House’s senior national security budget official at the Office of Management and Budget, where he oversaw all U.S. foreign affairs and national security budgeting.
Columnist Resources
Recent Work
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"Don't Reinvent the Foreign Assistance Wheel"
Foreign Service Journal (March 2008) -
"Greater Discipline Required on Defence Spending"
Financial Times (March 19, 2008) -
"Iraq's Sticker Shock"
Foreign Policy (March/April 2007) -
"The Politics of National Security Budgets"
The Stanley Foundation (February 2007) -
"Post-Combat Stabilization and Reconstruction: The Lessons for U.S. Government Organization and National Security Resource Planning"
Iraq and America: Choices and Consequences (Henry L. Stimson Center, 2006)
Recommended Links
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Brookings Institution
An independent research and policy institute -
Center for Defense Information
An institute that monitors the military -
Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments
A nonpartisan research center that analyzes defense economics and defense policy -
Center for Strategic and International Studies
Strategic insights and policy solutions for decision makers in government, international institutions, the private sector, and civil society -
Council on Foreign Relations
A nonpartisan resource for information and analysis -
Council for a Livable World
A disarmament advocacy organization -
DefenseLINK
Official website of the U.S. Defense Department -
Democracy Arsenal
Opinion and commentary on U.S. foreign policy and global affairs -
Office of Management and Budget
White House office responsible for devising and submitting the president's annual budget proposal to Congress -
OMB Watch
A nonprofit research, educational, and advocacy organization that focuses on budget issues -
USAID
Government agency that provides U.S. economic and humanitarian assistance worldwide