Connected to Society: The Political Beliefs of U.S. Army Generals

Abstract

This article examines the issue of the connectedness of military leaders with civil society through an analysis of the political beliefs and identification of a sample of U.S. Army general officers. As part of a larger study of the military profession, a sample of 62 Army generals was asked about their political views, party affiliation, and other issues that would indicate their more general political world view. Unlike previous studies that have relied primarily upon questionnaires, this one follows a more qualitative approach. Using a semistructured interviewing technique, it was possible to obtain a more complete understanding of the extent to which the political and social philosophy of the Army's senior leadership diverges from that of the wider society. Based upon this elaboration of their political viewpoints, the hypothesis that these officers are disconnected from mainstream American society must be rejected. The article offers a far more sanguine view of the future of civil-military relations in this society than that which has emerged recently in the professional literature.