Rethinking the QDR The Case for a Persistent Defense Review

P. Dean Patterson and Lenny J. Richoux offer a cogent argument for a Department of Defense quadrennial defense review (QDR). Having been established in 1997, the QDR is a relatively new process. It examines the budgetary process to ensure that taxpayers’ money is well spent. At the same time, it is equally important to ensure that each service receives its far share of the allocation pie. Abandoning the QDR, enlarging it, or creating a persistent QDR are the only viable options the authors believe are available. Of the three choices, Patterson and Richoux believe that creating a persistent QDR provides the best option.