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GNA of 1986 and Jointness This paper wi

This paper will discuss the effect the Goldwater-Nichols Defense Reorganization Act (GNA) of 1986 had on the developing concept of jointness. Jointness refers to the ability of the Services and the various defense agencies to plan and operate in a unified fashion. Although jointness has been an ideal of military planning and operations from time immemorial, it was lacking in the United States military throughout most of the Cold War. Between 1947, when the Defense Department was created, and 1986, when the GNA was enacted, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff was weak in power. The effect of this weakness on jointness was exacerbated by the fact that the individual Services retained considerable autonomy to develop war plans, train and equip forces, and allocate resources according to their own parochial interests. As a result, spending by the Services tended to be unbalanced, too much emphasis was placed upon annual budgeting at the expense of other important activities, and the Services focused too much upon their own interests and competing with each other (Art, 1992, pp. 2-4).

The Goldwater-Nichols Defense Reorganization Act of 1986 was enacted as part of an effort to address the problems in the military forces made evident by the Iran Hostage Crisis, the U.S. intervention in Beirut, and the U.S. invasion of Grenada. The Iran Hostage Crisis had illustrated the inability of the military to adequately respond to new types of situations, while the Beirut intervention and the Grenada invasion had highlighted several serious problems in the command structure of the military. Both Congress and the Executive Branch began exploring various reform options which would address the noted deficiencies. In the Spring of 1986, Congressional leaders began conferring with advisors to President Reagan and produced the GNA by the Fall of 1986 (Lovelace, 1996, pp. 36-42).

The GNA had several aims. Among the most important were expa...

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GNA of 1986 and Jointness This paper wi. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 11:47, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1681450.html