9/15/2011 by Robbin Laird The Second Line of Defense team is starting a series, which we will call the strategic whiteboard. By leveraging the new systems being designed and built today, and building upon the capabilities of these new systems, America can have a better defense at less cost. This…
09/15/2011 by Col Robert "Juice" Newton USAF (ret) The coming weeks will see Congress debate various recommendations from the so-called deficit reduction super committee and the stakes could hardly be higher. This committee has until Thanksgiving to find $1.5 trillion in budget cuts and failure to do so will lead…
09/14/2011 - Captain Robinson Harris US Navy (Retired), now with Lockheed Martin Mission Systems and Sensors (MS2), provides an assessment of how the new Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) might be used in an irregular warfare scenario. The case described was that of a notional crisis in Nigeria with the need to assist the…
An Interview With Colonel Mark Desens, Commander of the 26th MEU 09/05/2011 - In July 2011, Second Line of Defense sat down with Colonel Mark Desens to discuss the recent deployment of the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit. Earlier we had discussed, with Col. “Ozzie” Osborn, the 15th MEU, the evolution…
09/13/2011: During the Second Line of Defense visit to USCG Island in Alameda, California, Captain John Prince and the Executive Officer of the Bertholf David Ramassini discussed their recent tour aboard the Bertholf. The conversation occurred in late July 2011 shortly after Captain Prince had relinquished command of the Bertholf…
09/12/2011 In this picture, one sees the Sec Def getting off of the Osprey from a flight last week. He obviously is a happy commuter. [caption id="attachment_23901" align="alignleft" width="640" caption="Credit: USN Visual Service"][/caption]
09/06/2011 By Maj. General Tim Hanifen, Rear Adm. Sinclair Harris and Robert Holzer Global demand for amphibious forces outstrips resources. When a crisis erupts the first question U.S. leaders often ask is, “Where are the aircraft carriers?” This historical axiom, however, has expanded over time and now regional commanders also…
09/05/2011 A recent French Navy video highlights the USMC landing on a French BPC. The French and the USN-USMC team demonstrated in the Libyan operations the value of flexible basing, using land and sea to project power. This is a core lesson learned going forward. http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xgbspu_us-marines-onboard-fns-tonnerre_news [caption id="attachment_23675" align="aligncenter" width="300"…
