Kind of.. But in the back & forth that I've read and fr/the Marines I know on the outer fringes of this at Quantico, its not concern being voiced by Gates.Originally Posted by William F. Owen
He's in the process of setting the tone for the future of the DOD.. Drawing the lines of who's doing what & when those lines are crossed. At the end of the day, as far as the overall direction each service takes, the decision is his.
He hears the Marines stubbornly standing their ground & railing for what they see as necessary & has basically said this:
[paraphrased] In the priority of threats both present & near future, & the Budgets & structure that I'm setting to address them we don't agree & I don't see you getting what you want.
But its helpful to start at the beginning where Gates & HQMC disagree, not in the middle w/the programs.
Gates sees the USMC taking a prominent role in future Irregular Conflicts.
HQMC has said yes, we agree.. but we're a Two-Fisted Fighter so we're going to need XY&Z to remain Predominant across all boards we touch.
Gates counters; for the foreseeable future (threat wise), those items in the #s you've projected, are unlikely & impractical b/c your primary role & most likely mission in the structure & vision I have set will be IW.
HQMC counters, these items are Dual suited & will revolutionize how we conduct both IW & HIC.
Gates says while these items will be an advancement.. they will not be as significant as to offset my overall (across all services) plans & projected budgets.. your current load out will suffice for any near threats.
And thats where it currently stands. Its not that this Marine Program is bad or that, they just don't fit. But in all fairness by comparison to Multi-billion $ FAILURES like:
-Future Combat Systems (FCS) or Land Warrior
-The Air Force's Tanker deal
-or the Navy's numerous ship debacles
The USMC's programs are well ahead of the curve & a drop in the bucket monetarily.
But what seems to be totally left out of this Debate is that SECDEF Gates has AGAIN left the "gate" open for the Marines to convince him to adjust his plans.
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