In March 2005, Admiral Michael Mullen, then Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Commander, Allied Joint Force Command summoned me to his office. He had learned I had two master’s degrees from the Naval Postgraduate School, and he had a special project for me. “I want you to write a paper I can give CNO [Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Vern] Clark to help get NPS off the BRAC list.” He was referring to the Congressional Base Realignment and Closure study then underway to save money by eliminating unnecessary or redundant military installations across the country.
Then-Acting Under Secretary of Defense (Acquisition, Technology, and Logistics) Michael W. Wynne’s 4 January 2005 memorandum, “2005 Base Closure and Realignment Selection Criteria,” identified the criteria by which to measure “Military Value.” They were:
1. The current and future mission capabilities, and the impact on operational readiness of the total force of the Department of Defense, including the impact on joint war fighting, training, and readiness.
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