All Publications by Gordon Adams

• Rethinking COIN: Petraeus Retires

  Gen. David Petraeus retired on August 31, 2011, after 37 years of service and with a well-deserved reputation as one of the principal architects of counter-insurgency (COIN)

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• Stimson Releases New Report on Security Assistance

  As the Arab world struggles to emerge from oppressive, generations-old autocracies, America's robust program to train and equip foreign militaries has become a focus of attention.

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• A New Way Forward: Rebalancing Security Assistance Programs and Authorities

  Stimson’s Budgeting for Foreign Affairs and Defense project released its new report on security assistance policies, programs, and authorities: A New Way Forward: Rebalancing

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• Five Myths About Defense Spending

  This article originally appeared in the Washington Post's Outlook section on Sunday, 16 January.

  By Dr. Gordon Adams and Matthew Leatherman
  

  Defense spending is a massive part of our

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• A Leaner and Meaner Defense

  The United States faces a watershed moment: it must decide whether to increase its already massive debt in order to continue being the world’s sheriff or restrain its military

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• Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review Released

  Stimson's Budgeting for Foreign Affairs and Defense program, led by Gordon Adams, released  a scorecard analyzing the QDDR. You can view the scorecard here, or read more of their

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• CBO’s Budget Outlook Further Confirms Tough Choices Lie Ahead

  The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has released its most recent analysis of the outlook for the budget and the economy.  With unemployment still hovering around 10 percent in

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• Afghanistan and Pakistan: The Graveyard for US Foreign Policy Planning?

  The foreign policy machinery in the Obama administration is finally grinding away on a difficult long-term policy and institutional problem: What should the US development and

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• Afghanistan and Pakistan: The Graveyward for US Foreign Policy Planning?

  The foreign policy machinery in the Obama administration is finally grinding away on a difficult long-term policy and institutional problem: What should the US development and

  … Read More »
• DOD Authorities for Foreign and Security Assistance Programs: A Comparison of the FY 2010 House and

  The House Armed Services Committee (HASC) marked up its version of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2010 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on June 18 and the Senate Armed Services

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• The Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review

  Scandals, coups, wars, nuclear agreements, and disasters generally draw the focus, when it comes to talking about American foreign policy. While it was pretty much overlooked in the

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• Change to administration’s plan proposed

  House lawmakers want the State Department to handle aid to Pakistan.

  Administrative authority for a new $400 million counterinsurgency fund for Pakistan should
  reside within the State

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• Presidential Inbox 2009: The First 100 Days

  The first 100 days of any administration are filled with tough choices and breaks from past policies. This administration is no different. In the lead-up to the election, Stimson

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• Increasing the U.S. defense budget won’t stimulate the economy

  The next war—the battle for even more defense spending—is now under way. Major weapons
  program manufacturers are worried that Defense Secretary Robert Gates may be serious about … Read More »

• A Foreign Affairs Budget for the Future: Fixing the Crisis in Diplomatic Readiness

  The Obama administration will face a wide range of foreign policy challenges and opportunities, ranging from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, to terrorism, to the challenges of

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• Rebalancing the Toolkit: Strengthening the Civilian Instruments of Statecraft

  The Challenge

  America’s statecraft is unbalanced and our national security is paying the price. Today, the military is being asked to perform a growing number of national security

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• A Foreign Affairs Budget For the Future:  Fixing the Crisis in Diplomatic Readiness

  “Our diplomatic leaders - be they in ambassadors’ suites or on the State Department’s seventh floor - must have the resources and political support needed to fully exercise their

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• Establishing the Next President’s National Security Agenda: Strengthening the Civilian Instrument

  The next president will inherit a severe and growing imbalance in the tool kit he has available for dealing with the national security challenges of the early twenty-first century.

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• Establishing the Next President’s National Security Agenda: How to Confront the Budget Morass

  In the third part of a series originally written for the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, Gordon Adams examines the complexities of the nearly-unwieldly defense budget.

  Making matters

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• Transforming European Militaries: Coalition Operations and the Technology Gap

  Gordon Adams and Guy Ben-Ari identify the key requirements for improvement of Europe’s abilities as an international actor. They focus on national and collaborative, as well as

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• Strengthening Statecraft and Security: Reforming U.S. Planning and Resource Allocation

  The Budgeting for Foreign Affairs and Defense project is pleased to present a report by Dr. Cindy Williams and Dr. Gordon Adams, “Strengthening Statecraft and Security: Reforming

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• Defense Spending and the Economy: Does the Defense Dollar Make a Difference?

  The impact of defense spending on the economy has become part of the growing debate about the need to put defense on the table to achieve deficit reduction.  It’s not a new subject;

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