Ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests, just a few words of welcome today. Im tom blanton. Im director of the National Security archive at George Washington university and honored to be one of the organizers of today. This is the day, 25 years ago, that president george h. W. Bush signed the nunnlugar legislation into law. Now, being document fetishists, we scanned the bush library for the photographs of that extraordinary moment, and none exist. There was not even a signing ceremony, which gives you a sense of the kind of mixed opinion inside the Bush Administration about this Congressional Initiative in Foreign Policy. But the judgment of history is in. The wall street journal called the nunnlugar legislation one of the most prescient pieces of legislation ever enacted. And today on the National Security archive website you can see the declassified documents showing the real danger of that time, the first ever declassified list of the 3,429 soviet Strategic Nuclear warheads that
System. This is two and a half hours. Committee will come to order. This week the committee will hold two hearings that focus on the two major pillars of our agenda. Tomorrow we will hear from the Service Chiefs of repairing and rebuild the military. Today well concentrate on the other pillar which is defense reform. We have done a lot of reform over the past two years. That includes acquisition reform, a new mail tear retirement system, mayor changes in military health care, commissary reform, a rewrite of the uniform code of military justice as well as significant organizational reform. While a lot has been done, however, a lot more needs to be done. The world around us is simply moving too fast for us to sit still and assume that the organizations and processes of the past will suffice for today and especially for tomorrow. Yes, we all have an obligation to see that taxpayer dollars are spent as efficiently and effectively as possible. Especially in fulfilling the first job of the f
Committee on the future of the u. S. Armed forces and recommendations to improve the services. Including cost savings and efficiencies, incentivizing and managing the civilian work force. [ gavel ] committee will come to order. This week, the committee will hold two hearings that focus on the two major pillars of our agenda. Tomorrow well hear from the Service Chiefs on repairing and rebuilding our military. Today, however, well concentrate on the other pillar, which is defense reform. Weve done a lot of reform over the past two years, that includes acquisition reform, a new military retirement system, major changes in military health care, commissary reform, a rewrite of the uniform code of military justice as well as significant organizational reform. While a lot has been done, however, a lot more needs to be done. If world around us is simply moving too fast for us to sit still and assume that the organizations and processes of the past will suffice for today and especially for tomo
You dont want to have such an emphasis that you miss the learnilear learning curve that you get out of a robust experimentation and prototype plan. Can i ask a question . Sure. It was done in three years. I just cant see that kind of result here in the u. S. , and yet there are times well need that kind of quick turn around. I think its a great example of urgent need. What can we put together that works . They went out and procured it and fielded it as fast as possible with our help. I think this gets to one of the things that i hope will be on your plate is the whole military requirement process. We spend so much time trying to get consensus and we over specify requirements we spent years on that up front that we are already behind the curve when we get to trying to aware the thing. Figuring out where do you need to have the military specks and where can you rely on commercial and integration and adaptation kind of i think thats a key distinction we need to work on. The israeli system
Always a way to keep learning even in a job you have done a long time. That is incredibly important advice i am just in all of my colleagues they have little the court for a law of years but they still think hard about every case i think everybody on the court does that even those of them there long time. I am a huge fan of my colleagues for that reason. There is nobody there on autopilot. It could be the 23rd time i have seen the issue by will think there is hard as i did the first time. I said she talked about her parents to remind her everyday of the impact of Public Service to pray every day she will live up to that example i think we can all agree she has exceeded that example with those expectations to have a huge impact on public education. Thank you so much. [applause] [inaudible conversations] good morning to the third offset conference here holding today to talk about what the third offset is the progress and the challenges Going Forward and what baby in storer for that third