"At just under a 100 pages [The Military We Need] feels slim, but is packed with ideas, challenges and argument that command the attention of anyone who has ever expressed an opinion on the Iraq war, the Middle East and terrorism. . . . Donnelly's new book will be required reading for anyone wondering just where Bush administration is heading in these days of $500 billion defense budgets, and when 9 out of the Pentagon's 10 divisions are either in Iraq, training to go out there, or recuperating after coming back."

--Martin Walker, United Press International

The gap between America’s strategic reach and its military grasp has reached a point of crisis, argues veteran defense analyst Thomas Donnelly in this comprehensive study of the U.S. armed forces needed in the post-9/11 world.

In the four years since al Qaeda’s catastrophic attacks against America, President Bush has put forward an ambitious slate of foreign policy goals, pledging to transform the political culture of the greater Middle East and preserve America’s place in the world as the sole superpower. In practice, the “Bush Doctrine” has meant a host of new missions for the U.S. military, from the counterterrorism and counterinsurgency campaigns of the global war on terror to the military containment of the People’s Republic of China. These are missions, however, that America’s armed forces are not sufficiently prepared to pursue.

As the Pentagon prepares its 2005 Quadrennial Defense Review—the crucial strategy paper that will shape the U.S. military for years to come—the Bush administration must confront tough choices about how transform America’s defense establishment for the challenges now confronting it. In this book, Donnelly offers an innovative and provocative blueprint for gauging the success of this endeavor.

Thomas Donnelly is a resident fellow in defense and security policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute and a member of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

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