On October 1, 1987, the most important piece of military legislation in the last 40 years was passed by Congress. It is also the most dangerous, according to the author.

When the Goldwater-Nichols Defense Department Reorganization Act became law, it created one military czar, making the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff a single military authority and sole military adviser to the president and to the secretary of defense. This legislation starts the nation down a road where, at best, the country is run more and more by the military and, at worst, actually becomes more vulnerable to a military takeover.

Based on extensive research, interviews with contemporary military and civilian leaders, and a personal view formed by 25 years of study and writing on topics of U.S. military leadership, the author explores the issue of civilian control of the military from the perspective of World War II, Korea, the Cuban missile crisis, and Vietnam. The book concludes with a seven-point recommendation to solve the potentially grave problems created by the Goldwater-Nichols Act.