ABSTRACT
The security of the nation has been and will remain an essential responsibility of our government. Since the founding of the United States, the nation has faced a wide variety of threats to its independence and sovereignty. During the formalization of the governmental infrastructure, the founding fathers recognized that the survival of the United States depended upon the developing and maintaining of appropriate diplomatic and military capabilities. In 1789, as a result, two of the first items of business for the new government were to create the Department of Foreign Affairs, which was soon renamed the Department of State, and to review the need for a small, national military. From this humble beginning, the United States would mature into the world’s only superpower. Despite this powerful status, America is vulnerable to both man-made and natural threats.
