Did a recent change in Pentagon reporting structure belatedly implement a Congressional directive made four years ago?
A November reporting-line change at the Defense Department was made in line with 2016 legislation which stated that the official overseeing the military's special operations forces should report directly to the head of the department. The Government Accountability Office reported in May 2019 on delays in implementing various related changes mandated by Congress aiming to improve performance and oversight.
The reporting-line change was made by Acting Defense Secretary Christopher Miller, who succeeded Mark Esper on Nov. 9. Against the backdrop of President Trump's election performance and other personnel moves, this top-level Defense Department change raised what may have been unwarranted suspicion. “Far from being a Trump power grab,” Luke Hertig, a former Obama-era National Security Council official wrote, “Miller just may have landed on a valuable reform.”
