America must be capable of proactively protecting the nation and its citizens. Our armed forces must be ready to act anywhere in the world where vital national interests are threatened. This can be achieved by giving the military the resources it needs to keep us safe and maintain freedom.
Despite Administration claims to the contrary, President Barack Obama’s budget proposal for FY 2013 would reduce national defense to the lowest of the major budget priorities of the federal government. Read More.
Issues 2012 provides candidates for elected office the ability to quickly identify the key issues of the day and present clear policy recommendations, supported by facts, for addressing them. Read More.
The Heritage Foundation offers a detailed plan to redesign entitlement programs, guarantee assistance to those who need it, and save the American dream for future generations. Read More.
The Ninth Circuit correctly dismissed Jose Padilla’s lawsuit against John Yoo, the former Department of Justice official who provided key analysis of legal questions arising from the war on terrorism. But being the traditionally liberal and oft-reversed Ninth Circuit, the court could not leave well enough alone and issued an…
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a paper last month urging the Department of Defense (DOD) to centralize the management of the Military Health System (MHS).[1] GAO has long held the view that the management structure for supervising the MHS is too de-centralized to impose the discipline necessary…
Threats to America’s security, way of life, and allies are increasing rather than decreasing. Instability persists in the Middle East, terrorists continue to plot attacks, adversaries buy and sell ballistic missiles and nuclear technology, and the intent of countries with the ability to pose a strategic threat to the U.S.…
Abstract: As Senator Jesse Helms wrote in his memoir, “Jefferson warned us that ‘the price of liberty is eternal vigilance.’… [T]he lesson of history is that to secure our liberty, America must be constantly on guard, preparing to defend our nation against tomorrow’s adversaries…
The U.S. House of Representatives showed strong support for national security when it voted through a reconciliation process to override the sequestration cuts scheduled for defense in January 2013. By following the House Armed Services Committee’s (HASC) lead in raising the top-line budget for defense over the…
A North Korean long-range ballistic missile launch into the Pacific Ocean, Russian threats of a preemptive strike against U.S. missile defenses in Europe, the Syrian regime’s continuing violence on protestors, and Taliban terrorist attacks in Afghanistan are just a few of the recent events that should serve to remind us…
As the House began its consideration of cybersecurity legislation last month, there was reason to be optimistic about the course that the House Leadership and the House Intelligence Committee had set. The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA), as it went to the floor, was imperfect to be sure,…
As America faces its first full decade post-9/11, how ready is she to protect her place in the world? The tragedy of the attacks of September 11, 2001, and the events that were precipitated by them—Iraq, Afghanistan, worldwide terrorist campaigns, the Arab Spring, and the continuing reordering in the Middle…
Throughout history, as in many other parts of the world today, political rule was the privilege of the strongest or the most powerful. Property was the possession of kings, barons, and lords. Each was born to his or her destiny, and almost all were subject to someone else. …
On Monday, the FBI arrested five individuals in a planned attack to blow up a Cleveland-area bridge. Unlike many of the foiled terror attacks seen in recent years, this recent plot seems to have no connection to Islamist extremism. Instead, three of the suspects are said to be self-proclaimed anarchists. …
Interactive U.S. map of troop representation levels Who serves in the active-duty ranks of the U.S. all-volunteer military? Conventional wisdom holds that military service disproportionately attracts minorities and men and women from disadvantaged backgrounds.…
A few Members of Congress, motivated by American combat in the Middle East, have called for the reinstatement of a compulsory military draft. The case for coercing young citizens to join the military is supposedly based on social justice?that all should serve?and…
This month, several individuals detained as "enemy combatants" will make their appeals for freedom to the highest court in the land. Perhaps now, more than any other time in recent memory, the eyes of the world are intensely focused…
The proposed global redeployment of U.S. troops coupled with the open question of how long U.S. forces will stay in Iraq highlight the need for objective data on force deployments, objectives, and results. Surprisingly, no comprehensive time series data on U.S. troop deployments by year and country seem to exist…
FYI: Heritage WebMemos are getting a new name. Beginning February 13, 2012, they will be called Issue Briefs. For the 50th consecutive year, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2012 provides funding and authorities for the U.S.…
Abstract: The Obama Administration’s FY 2012 budget request suggests that the Administration has subordinated the nation’s defense needs to budget goals. The proposed budget continues the trend of reducing defense spending below safe levels while allowing entitlement spending to grow unchecked. To begin correcting…
Abstract: In 2009 alone, U.S. authorities foiled at least six terrorist plots against the United States. Since September 11, 2001, at least 30 planned terrorist attacks have been foiled, all but two of them prevented by law enforcement. The two notable exceptions are the…
Abstract: For more than 200 years, the United States has successfully preserved and protected its navigational rights and freedoms by relying on naval operations, diplomatic protests, and customary international law. U.S. membership in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS)…
The American people in many cases do not recognize the incredible value of one of the crown jewels of the nation: the...…
The transparency of some anti-defense ploys boggles the imagination. The most recent one has to do with the production...…
During the NATO meeting in Chicago, the alliance will declare that it has an interim operational capability to defend...…
An effort funded by a major left-wing environmentalist group is looking to appeal to conservative and libertarian...…
America's flying fortress, the Cold War-era B-52 bomber, has been in service for the last 50 years, running missions...…
“Providing for the common defense” is the federal government’s single most important responsibility as prescribed by...…
Last week, the British government made a decision to change from the Carrier Variant of the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF)...…
“Provide for common defense” is a core constitutional obligation of the federal government. Yet entitlement spending is...…
In his recent piece in The Wall Street Journal, Senator Jon Kyl (R–AZ) makes the case that the United States should not...…
A few congressmen are now attempting to remove some longstanding lawful tools in the counterterrorism fight. The...…
Senior Fellow, National Security Affairs and Chung Ju-Yung Fellow for Policy Studies
Senior Research Fellow in Anglo-American Relations
Research Fellow, Asian Studies Center
Deputy Director, The Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies and Director, Douglas and Sarah Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies
Senior Research Fellow
Director, Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom
Vice President, Foreign and Defense Policy Studies, and Director, The Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies
Senior Research Fellow, Northeast Asia
Director, Asian Studies Center
Ronald Reagan Distinguished Fellow in Public Policy and Chairman of the Center for Legal and Judicial Studies