In McNamara’s time, the US military’s strong technological lead forced adversaries to react. Today, the United States’ peer adversary, China, is wealthier, more capable, more advanced, and more innovative than was the Soviet Union. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) already has larger ground, missile, and naval forces than the US military and is catching up in terms
of capability. More concerning, the PLA is assessed as being ahead of the DoD in important emerging technologies such as hypersonic weapons and directed energy.7
