John Ridge 🇺🇸🇺🇦🇹🇼

Seriously though, this is asshole "analysis" and speaks poorly of the selection criteria for TT faculty at Harvard.

A lot of states are capable of generating modest ASCM raids these days. That places a harsh floor on minimum sensor, weapons, and C2 fit

FFGs would be operating alone in many scenarios, that’s a fundamental part of the CONOP.

Besides supporting SAGs and CSGs, they would also operate individually for low threat missions that we would otherwise be forced to assign a Burke to.

Anything lesser will get wiped by a modest ASCM raid

The first official confirmation that Noem herself made the decision not to turn the planes around. A couple hundred men were tortured as a result — and soon after, the Supreme Court confirmed that the Trump admin’s Alien Enemies Act process was a total violation of due process.

I have received extremely bad news on this front

Sorry, that wasn’t directed at you

Given the air and missile threat in INDOPACOM, the Navy’s formulation of the requirements for FFG(X) was 100% accurate.

None of Constellation’s struggles are downstream of poor requirements.

Clearly @uticaeric.bsky.social doesn't have the innovative mindset gene. Get on the grind.

I don’t know where people have gotten the idea that Connie represents an exquisite level of capability.

Because it’s right around the floor of minimum capability for a surface combatant.

The cycle to design, build, and commission a surface combatant is about a decade.

RFI was in 2017, so 2027-2029 is exactly what everyone should have been expecting

We weren’t getting anything before 2028-2029 anyway, regardless of source selection or management.

The Navy huffed their own glue about COTS and Fincantieri underbid on cost/schedule. The current budget and timeline are realistic for a new surface combatant of its size.

bsky.app/profile/john...

Constellation certainly stumbled in certain respects. But otherwise, I strongly argue that it was doing relatively well given everything else.

Moreover, there is nothing that can reasonably fill the void left by its cancellation.

bsky.app/profile/john...

bsky.app/profile/john...

Constellation is arguably the minimum level of capability for a crewed surface combatants in INDOPACOM

NAVSEA deluded themselves (and Congress) into believing they could get an FFG faster and cheaper by leveraging an existing design.

Starting from scratch would have yielded a superior hull form plus more realistic budget and schedule expectations.

This is the stupidest and most self-destructive USN procurement decision in at least a decade.

Constellation was a relatively healthy program and progressing on a realistic budget and schedule, mostly baseless criticism of it notwithstanding.

Constellation was mostly fine if you actually followed the details. There were no serious real cost or schedule overruns.

Fincantieri transparently underbid on both, so revision was inevitable.

This is the single worst USN procurement decision in at least a decade

I have a brilliant idea on how to counter Russia and China. We could focus on building up our partners in Asia and the ongoing conventional fucking war in Europe instead of a pointless war in South America.

Someone make me a senior fellow. This shit's easy as hell.

Dan Driscoll is an idiot and they have him running the show in Europe.

International security politics discussions here are somewhat annoying because people want there to be clear cut action-reaction results. The truth is that the world is far more complicated than this and many conflicting and sometimes contradictory things can be true at the same time..

I doubt they will tbqh

In the end, I suspect the GOP probably would’ve abolished the filibuster rather than make concessions

SNAP would have been funded automatically by any CR. It’s a mandatory outlay. The Senate CR doesn’t contain any anomalies with respect to it

On balance, I don't think there would be significant value gained continuing the shutdown given the latter. There should be serious questions for Schumer and Senate Democratic leadership after this debacle.

I am of two minds. It is extremely frustrating that Senate Democrats are concluding a deal without any substantiative concessions after 40 days.

But it is evident now they never had a coherent plan or a theory of victory for the shutdown, whether it was ACA subsidies or impoundment.

I see nothing in here that would require the White House to actually spend any available funds, prevent rescissions or withholding of payments, or do anything to change what has become an unsettling status quo in this calendar year.