ABSTRACT

As scholars documented and debated the significance of the growing military political power during the Clinton years, they struggled with what to do about it from a corrective policy perspective. The shortcomings of objective control and subjective control seemed apparent and many believed that new normative theory was needed. The tenure of Defense Secretary William Perry was one which saw the recasting of the national military strategy to better address the post-Cold War era, something that the civilian leadership at the Pentagon played a vital role in crafting. Extensive screening of officers for critical positions as a monitoring technique was usually reserved for 4-star billets after McNamara's tenure as Secretary of Defense, but when Secretary Rumsfeld returned to the Pentagon he pushed that down to the 1 and 2-star level in many instances. If General Marshall were alive today, he likely would have been appalled by the treatment that military officers received at the hands of Secretaries McNamara and Rumsfeld.