Helps readers to understand the role of Congress in military affairs and national and international security policy. In this book, the contributors include the scholars in the field as well as practitioners, all delving into the ways Congress attempts to direct the military. It features four tools that play a key role in congressional action.

"Colton C. Campbell and David P. Auerswald have organized an impressive collection of essays that gives timely and lively perspectives on the important topic of contemporary congressional and civil-military relations. They combine multiple perspectives that feature accessible original academic research that will help students, scholars, and political practitioners understand relations between Congress and the military establishment." -- James Thurber, Director and Distinguished Professor, Center for Congressional and Presidential Studies, American University "This edited volume is a thoughtful and significant study of a hugely important, but under-covered, topic: Congress and the military. The book merits the widest possible readership because its chapters, such as those on the evolution of military appointments or the role of congressional defense commissions, are filled with compelling analyses by acknowledged scholars in the field. This work of scholarship should be a must-read for people who are affiliated with Congress and the military, as well as students and citizens keen on learning about the Congress-military relationship: how and why it works as it does. There is no doubt that this book is a valuable achievement sure to promote a better understanding of two complex institutions and their interactions." -- Walter Oleszek, American University