Flournoy speaks on interagency imbalances

Former Undersecretary of Defense for Policy Michele Flournoy recently spoke at the Chairman’s Forum at the Stimson Center in Washington, DC. Flournoy discussed imbalances in interagency resourcing, the growth of interagency operations, the National Security structure, public-private partnerships, and U.S. sanctions on Iran. Flournoy also touched on the possible restructuring of U.S. military forces after the end of operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, the ill effects of aggressive partisanship, and “significant” cyber threats.

As an example of  interagency resource imbalance, Flournoy compared reactions to defense and diplomacy funding, stating that Capitol Hill is more willing to fund the military because such a decision is viewed as patriotic.  However, in her view, Congress is far less likely to fund projects that involve strengthening the diplomatic core or enabling USAID to become more expeditionary, because those programs are viewed as growing the government and the bureaucracy.  Fournoy stated that this disparity leads to “one instrument that is on steroids… and everybody else on life support,” and that non-military tools are severely under-resourced.

The Stimson’s Chairman’s Forum is a strategic conversation featuring respected leaders in the foreign and security policy arena.  Flournoy was interviewed by Lincoln Bloomfield, Jr., Stimson’s Chairman of the Board. Stimson hosts the Chairman’s Forum eight times each year.

For more information about Flournoy’s interview at the Stimson Center, please follow the link below.
Flournoy Speaks at Stimson’s Chairman’s Forum