American Power Foreign Policy Conference

In this 20-minute segment of the American Power Foreign Policy Conference, noted Navalist CAPT Jerry Hendrix, Ph.D., USN(Ret) reviews the status of the US Navy, its mission, and roles, as well as its status in today’s world.  He notes that the freedom of the seas is already eroding quickly as China ramps up their own Navy and begins to establish a global naval presence.  Of particular note, Dr. Hendrix clearly establishes the dramatic shortfall in America’s naval shipbuilding industrial base, while at the same time pointing out the vital importance of America’s submarines as our “primary warfighters”.  Specifically, Dr. Hendrix points out the maintenance disasters associated with USS Helena (SSN 725) and USS Boise (SSN 764), among others.  The session moderator, National Review’s Rich Lowry, compares the US Navy today to the British Royal Navy as it began to collapse as a global power a century ago.  “We need to add capacity in ship repair; we need to add capacity in shipbuilding,” according to Dr. Hendrix.  Bartlett Maritime Corporation wholeheartedly agrees.

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