Interesting article, if I were to restructure the Corps it would be a much smaller organization for many of the reasons stated in the article. I have no specific numbers but an idea from unit breakdown would probably be closer to 100,000 Marines.
Its important to explain my doctrine/philosophy to understand my overall vision of the Corps.
1st, its important to understand the that what the USMC provides is just as important as Special Operations which is something that gets lost on a lot of Mil sites enamored with SOF but having no idea what the USMC even does.
I say this b/c you'll hear some people say the Corps should be more like SOF; I think thats a mistake. I think the USMC & SOCOM should move closer by tying up its SUPPORTING/SUPPORTED relationships but if anything the Corps should be more like the Corps & strengthen its own unique capabilities.
The Corps doesn't need to be more "SOF-like". On the strength of its own unique capabilities its the YING to SOCOM's YANG. By definition set in the Goldwater-Nichols & Nunn-Cohen Acts SOF are Specialized, Narrowly Defined, Mission Specific forces.
The Corps provides a capability that are the polar opposite of that. Skilled but not Specialized, purpose-built to be Flexible-not easily Defined, moving fluidly in the gaps caused by more defined units fr/SOF to Armored, like mortar filling the capability gaps of the Joint Force.
The Corps provides Task Organized Forces Tailored to Specific Missions, usually on short notice & limited in duration, ranging from Special Operations/Low Intensity Conflict & Crisis Response to Clandestine Raid up to Medium Mechanized Assault.
The flexibility provided by a Mission Adaptable/Tailored, Expeditionary-Combined Arms Force, thats forward deployed fr/Amphibious shipping is unique & can't easily be reproduced.
But there is no need for 3x 45,000-60,000man units to do it.
My vision for the Corps would be
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