Victory on the Potomac: The Goldwater-Nichols Act Unifies the Pentagon (Williams-Ford Texas A&M University Military History Series) [Paperback]

James R. Locher III (Author), Sam Nunn (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 14, 2004 | Series: Williams-Ford Texas A&M University Military History Series

War is waged not only on battlefields. In the mid-1980s a high-stakes political struggle to redesign the relationships among the president, secretary of defense, Joint Chiefs of Staff, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, and warfighting commanders in the field resulted in the Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986. Author James R. Locher III played a key role in the congressional effort to repair a dysfunctional military whose interservice squabbling had cost American taxpayers billions of dollars and put the lives of thousands of servicemen and women at risk. Victory on this front helped make possible the military successes the United States has enjoyed since the passage of the bill and to prepare it for the challenges it must still face.Victory on the Potomac provides the first detailed history of how Congress unified the Pentagon and does so with the benefit of an insider's view. In a fast-paced account that reads like a novel, Locher follows the bill through congressional committee to final passage, making clear that the process is neither abstract nor automatic. His vivid descriptions bring to life the amazing cast of this real-life drama, from the straight-shooting chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Barry Goldwater, to the peevishly stubborn secretary of defense, Caspear Weinberger.Locher's analysis of political maneuvering and bureaucratic infighting will fascinate anyone who has an interest in how government works, and his understanding of the stakes in military reorganization will make clear why this legislative victory meant so much to American military capability. James R. Locher III, a graduate of West Point and Harvard Business School began his career in Washington as an executive trainee in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. He has worked in the White House, the Pentagon, and the Senate. During the period covered by this book, he was a staff member for the Senate Committee on Armed Services. Since then, he has served as an assistant secretary of defense in the first Bush and the early Clinton administrations. Currently, he works as a consultant and lecturer on defense matters.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“. . . a monumental Washington battle in prose that is both exciting for experts and informative for novices. . . . offers a unique historical lesson in rational decision making and civilian control of the military, and reminds us that the United States never pauses on the path to perfection.”--William S. Cohen, former Secretary of Defense

(William S. Cohen, former Secretary of Defense )

About the Author

James R. Locher III, a graduate of West Point and Harvard Business School began his career in Washington as an executive trainee in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. He has worked in the White House, the Pentagon, and the Senate. During the period covered by this book, he was a staff member for the Senate Committee on Armed Services. Since then, he has served as an assistant secretary of defense in the first Bush and the early Clinton administrations. Currently, he works as a consultant and lecturer on defense matters.

Product Details

• Paperback: 544 pages
• Publisher: TAMU Press; New edition edition (May 14, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585443980
• ISBN-13: 978-1585443987
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.2 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #792,433 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Setting the Stage for the NEXT Reform of National Security, April 10, 2008

By 

Robert D. Steele (Oakton, VA United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Victory on the Potomac: The Goldwater-Nichols Act Unifies the Pentagon (Williams-Ford Texas A&M University Military History Series) (Paperback)

I bought this book at the Army War College after hearing its author speak to the Army Strategy Conference on "Rebalancing the Instruments of National Power." I have posted 29 pages of notes at Earth Intelligence Network, with a page or two from Jim Locher's brilliant luncheon presentation.

Having spent the evening with this book, and with an understanding of what the Project on National Security Reform will be providing to the next President of the United States, I found the book totally inspiring, and most important for what it represents as proof that "Phase II" of national security reform is not just possible, but likely in 2009.

A few highlights:

1) The service chiefs fought this bitterly, to include lies and deceptions and fabricated studies.

2) Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Jones, and later Crowe, get high praise for having the gumption to call for reform in the first case, and agree with reform in the second, but they were virtual outcasts for doing so.

3) Senator Sam Nunn will be back. As I look at the make-up of the Project, which also benefits from Newt Gingrich's brilliance and his mastery of history and House protocol, I have a very strong feeling that the follow-on to Goldwater-Nichols, a National Security Act of 2009, is not just viable, but undefeatable.

4) I've known Jim Locher as a thoughtful and courteous person for over a decade, and this book confirms my personal view that he is one of the most loyal, dedicated, intelligent, and responsible individuals we have, totally committed to public service in the purest sense of the word. The reviewer who demeans the author has no basis, in my view, for his negative judgement.

I have just one worry: everyone is beginning to realize that neither John McCain nor Barack Obama have a strong bench, and at the same time everyone I talk to seems to believe they will repeat the long-standing mistake of seeking to implement a single-party executive. This they must not be allowed to do. Please visit Reuniting America to understand the concept of Transpartisanship, in which ALL parties (including Libertarians, Reforms, Greens, and others) share leadership positions so that we might harness the COMPLETE distributed intelligence of the entire Nation.

The Project will provide a preliminary report on Phase II of national security reform in early July 2008, and a longer report in September 2008. Once a President is elected, a complete set of Presidential directives, draft legislation, and recommended amendments to Congressional jurisdictions and protocols, will be provided so that the President might be ready to implement national security reform within 100 days of taking office. We cannot wait for the Quadrennial Defense Review in the second year of the Presidency; those focusing their time on influencing that document would be well-advised to contribute shorter versions of their work sooner to the Project. By 1 May 2008.

In his comments today at the Army War College, the author told us that everyone said this would be impossible; that it was lunatic, and so on. This book is a deep historical account of how good intentions across party lines can achieve the impossible and serve the public. While I disrespect both party machines for failing to control a reckless and arrogant presidency hijacked by the vice president, I do believe that we can create a narrative on the need for reform that the public will accept and then demand of its Congress.

I will miss Barry Goldwater, the last true conservative I remember, but I am, in putting this book down, confident that John McCain and Sam Nunn and others can find common ground. This book proves the impossible can be achieved, and I believe this book is essential substantiation that the next step: civilian professionalization, inter-agency operations and authorities, multinational information sharing, a robust "white hat" capability, and a national open source agency that can influence how $2 trillion a year in other people's money is spent eradicating the ten high level threats to humanity, are all achievable in the near term.

See also my reviews of the following books that complement this one:

On the Psychology of Military Incompetence

Flawed by Design: The Evolution of the CIA, JCS, and NSC

The Rules of the Game: Jutland and British Naval Command

Bureaucratic Politics And Foreign Policy

The Pathology of Power

The Sorrows of Empire: Militarism, Secrecy, and the End of the Republic (The American Empire Project)

The Unconquerable World: Power, Nonviolence, and the Will of the People

Wilson's Ghost: Reducing the Risk of Conflict, Killing, and Catastrophe in the 21st Century

Breach of Trust: How Washington Turns Outsiders Into Insiders

Vice: Dick Cheney and the Hijacking of the American Presidency

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gripping and Insightful, "Victory" for Studying Policymaking, January 12, 2003

By 

Michael Bob Starr (Abilene, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Victory on the Potomac: The Goldwater-Nichols Act Unifies the Pentagon (Texas A & M University Military History Series) (Hardcover)

This is quite easily one of the best books I've ever read on the creation of public policy. Locher paints a full and colorful picture of the military reform efforts culminating in the Goldwater-Nichols Act. I never realized what a role the Beirut/Lebanon operations played in creating an atmosphere in which military reform began to be viewed as necessary, and I found both the strategy and actions used to push the legislation through the Senate Armed Services Committee in 1985-86 particularly fascinating. With regards to balancing personal insights and meticulous research, in my opinion "Victory on the Potomac" is unequalled, and I consider it one of the top prizes in my personal library. If your interests include public policy, successful reform attempts or the organization of the U.S. military, you will find this book to be an entertaining and informative treasure.

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential Reading, January 27, 2011

By 

M. J. Harwood (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Victory on the Potomac: The Goldwater-Nichols Act Unifies the Pentagon (Williams-Ford Texas A&M University Military History Series) (Paperback)

Any military officer, from any nation in the world, should read this epic story. The lessons are legion. And just because 'the adventure' happens in the 1980s, the truth is that the same battles are being fought today, with the same examples of partisanship, tribalism and the seemingly default position of man 'not to cooperate with his fellow man'.

We need to change that paradigm and this book helps show you how.