James Hohenstein and Christopher Nolan are Partners in
the
New York office
It is a fundamental precept of military planning that naval
operations are a capital-intensive endeavor, given the long time
involved in the design and construction of the ships of the U.S.
Navy's fleet. The Navy currently has 274 deployable ships and
is functioning in accordance with a 30-year shipbuilding plan to
ultimately increase the fleet to 308 vessels.
However, in a speech, President-Elect Donald Trump said,
"My plan will build the 350-ship Navy we need. ...This will be
the largest effort at rebuilding our military since Ronald Reagan,
and it will require a truly national effort." Although that
speech was delivered on Oct. 21, 2016, more than two weeks before
his election, there is every reason to consider these ambitions as
more than mere campaign promises. President-Elect Trump has
nominated a near-unprecedented number of retired military leaders
to his cabinet position. His
