The Ronald Reagan Institute released its second annual National Security Innovation Base report card which shows the United States faces challenges “in modernization and innovating defense technologies to secure a competitive edge against China and other enemies” , reports The Foreign Desk.
The report was conducted by “prominent defense specialists who assigned various grades, including Bs, Cs, Ds, and even one F.” The report evaluates the performance of the U.S. government across ten critical areas to gauge the strength of the ‘National Security Innovation Base’ (NSIB), as America’s military, economic, and technological edge diminishes in comparison to China. Six out of the 10 areas evaluated in the Reagan scorecard showed either no improvement or a decline in performance compared to the previous year.
Rachel Hoff, policy director at the Reagan Institute and one of the authors of the report, informed journalists during a briefing before the launch of the scorecard, explaining it suggests that while there have been some positive developments, known as “green shoots,” there hasn’t been substantial progress in translating these developments into significant momentum forward.
According to the report card, the U.S. is a prominent global innovator with a thriving private sector. However, lingering weaknesses pose significant risks to America’s competitiveness and could result in the U.S.’s military inferiority.
The report also highlights the challenge in securing funding for new government initiatives. This issue stems from budget constraints and dysfunction in congressional appropriations, hindering the transformation of innovation into actionable capabilities. “The government received a low F score due to its failure to adequately and consistently fund new technologies. The report highlights that Congress’s lack of action hinders progress on essential projects, and the absence of a budget for the fiscal year 2024 is causing significant delays in critical programs” reports The Foreign Desk.
The Foreign Desk reports on additional grades, which include the national security workforce being graded as a D. According to the report, concerns about an aging workforce and demographic shifts suggest ongoing challenges in matching skills efficiently and manually handling burdensome vetting procedures.
The report card graded “customer clarity” with a D. It cautioned that advancements within the Pentagon, CIA, and other vital components of the national security framework have been significantly undermined due to the congressional inability to pass a budget. This failure is constraining progress and weakening the incentive for industry and investors to engage.
The report emphasizes inadequate funding for the advancement of new ‘collaborative combat aircraft.’ It expresses worries about Congress’ commitment to enhancing vital technology, pointing out the unchanged budget allocations for innovation in the FY2024 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
Additional sectors within the defense industry also received less favorable grades. The concept of defense modernization, which encompasses upgrading U.S. armed forces and national security capabilities to meet 21st-century standards, received a grade of D.