By Douglas Holtz-Eakin
The young drop coverage to avoid higher premiums
"Mayday," the universal distress call, is herein sounded for a U.S. Navy in serious trouble. Even as the Navy continues to fulfill commitments around the world, the number of ships and aircraft is decreasing, and those that remain are aging at an unacceptable rate.
One of the key elements underpinning the United States as a global power is its power-projection capability. That capability is centered on the Navy's ability to deploy and maintain maritime superiority at point of entry wherever required.
Sailors and Marines serving on aircraft carriers can expect long deployments for the next few years because of ongoing crises in the Middle East and a shrinking number of carriers available for duty.
The U.S. Navy is spending more than $20 million each year sending ships to poorer nations in the Asian-Pacific region to provide cataract surgery, dental fillings and other medical care.
The U.S. Navy is spending more than $20 million each year sending ships to poorer nations in the Asian-Pacific region to provide cataract surgery, dental fillings and other medical care.
Both types would be less expensive, thus more could be built, he writes.
He writes, "The U.S. has four large tasks ahead if it is to guarantee the nation's command of the seas and with it, both the international order that a century of American diplomatic and military effort has established, as well as our status as the world's leading power.
