ABSTRACT
Before the Second World War, getting new ships built was never a straightforward task for the US Navy. More than any other great power’s fleet, the US Navy’s fate was subject to the unpredictable whims and fashions of a notoriously fickle political process. This was mainly because there was one extraordinary difference between the United States’ naval needs for self-defence and those of any other power. The United States did not need a large navy.
