Ground Truth

The limitations of America's land forces remain a fundamental constraint on U.S. military strategy. The cutbacks of the Clinton years and the Bush administration's failure to foresee the need for larger ground forces in the wake of 9/11 have undercut America's ability to fight the Long War. Resolving the stark divergence between America's military ends and means--in terms of force size, training, and modernization--will be a crucial challenge for the next administration. In Ground Truth: The Future of U.S. Land Power, Thomas Donnelly and Frederick W. Kagan pose five urgent questions for policymakers: What is the strategic role of American ground forces? What missions will these forces undertake in the future? What is the nature of land warfare in the twenty-first century? What qualities are necessary to succeed on the battlefields of the Long War? What is the ideal size and configuration of the force--and how much will it cost? Answers to such questions are long overdue. The stresses of prolonged operations in the Middle East have strained the U.S. Army and Marine Corps; if the United States is to maintain its status as the sole superpower, American land power must be restructured to confront unprecedented challenges. Only a dedicated, bipartisan effort can create a ground force that is not only larger and more flexible, but retrained and reequipped. Donnelly and Kagan provide a plan of action for policymakers to begin that vital rebuilding.