# Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs

In the United States Department of Defense, the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs (ASD (M&RA)), formerly the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs (ASD (RA)), serves as Principal Staff Assistant and advisor to the Secretary of Defense, Deputy Secretary of Defense and Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, with responsibility for "overall policies and procedures of [U.S.] Total Force manpower, personnel and reserve affairs," including the Army National Guard, Army Reserve, Navy Reserve, Marine Corps Reserve, Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve and Coast Guard Reserve. The ASD (M&RA) reports directly to the Under Secretary of Defense (P&R) and exercises authority, direction, and control over the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve. On September 16, 2022, President Biden announced his intent to nominate Ronald Keohane to the position.

## Responsibilities

According to a Statement of Intent signed by the ASD(M&RA), the purpose of the office is "to set the conditions for a sustainable, seamlessly integrated and complementary total force." To do so, the ASD(M&RA) seeks to "proactively deliver credible advice and information about the capabilities of the reserve components," and "develop the policies and resources necessary to fully exploit those capabilities." The language of these statements is precise and deliberate. As the Statement of Intent explains:
* The ASD(M&RA) "sets the conditions" because the individual armed services must integrate the forces themselves.
* “Seamlessly integrated” and “complementary” are characteristics of a reserve force that can augment and reinforce the active components in every facet of the National Security Strategy. These characteristics imply an absence of friction and a mutually supporting force structure.
* A “total force” is the combination of active and reserve components that service chiefs provide willingly, and that unified combatant commanders can utilize effectively.
* “Delivering credible advice and information” requires fidelity to fact and a humility that avoids boastfulness and over-promising.
* “Resources” include modern and well-positioned equipment and facilities, and the assets necessary for a force that is trained for both irregular and conventional warfare prior to mobilization and deployment.
* To "exploit" reserve capabilities means “to take full advantage” of them. In business, it would mean a high return on investment.
The Statement of Intent also sets out a metric for this office's performance: "Our success will be measured by the degree to which we have advanced a culture of mutual appreciation and confidence in both the active and reserve components."

## History

The title and portfolio of the Assistant Secretary for Manpower and Reserve Affairs has evolved several times over the years. An Assistant Secretary of Defense was first assigned oversight of DoD manpower and personnel affairs in 1950 by Secretary of Defense George C. Marshall. In September 1955, Secretary of Defense Charles Wilson redesignated the position as Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower, Personnel, and Reserve).
DoD Directive 5120.27 (31 January 1961) redesignated the position as Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower), but after a few years, the Reserve Forces Bill of Rights and Vitalization Act (P.L. 90-168, signed 1 December 1967), changed the title to Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower and Reserve Affairs).
Defense Directive 5124.1, signed 20 April 1977, combined the position with the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Installations and Logistics) to become the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower, Reserve Affairs, and Logistics).
Following the FY 1984 Defense Authorization Act (P.L. 98-94, 24 September 1983), the title was changed to Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower, Installations, and Logistics), and the reserve affairs functions were reconstituted into a new position called Assistant Secretary of Defense (Reserve Affairs).
The Assistant Secretary of Defense (Reserve Affairs) became a reporting official to the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness when the latter role was established through the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1994 (P.L. 103-160).
Section 902 of the Carl Levin and Howard P. "Buck" McKeon National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015 (P.L. 113-291, 19 December 2014) redesignated the position as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs.

## Office holders

Assistant Secretaries of Defense for Manpower & Reserve Affairs (and preceding offices) :
| Name | Tenure | SecDef(s) Served Under | President(s) Served Under |
| Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower and Personnel) ||||
| Anna M. Rosenberg | November 15, 1950 – January 20, 1953 | George C. Marshall Robert A. Lovett | Harry Truman |
| John A. Hannah | February 11, 1953 – July 31, 1954 | Charles E. Wilson | Dwight Eisenhower |
| Carter L. Burgess | September 24, 1954 – September, 1955 | Charles E. Wilson | Dwight Eisenhower |
| Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower, Personnel, and Reserve) ||||
| Carter L. Burgess | September, 1955 – January 22, 1957 | Charles E. Wilson | Dwight Eisenhower |
| William H. Francis | April 19, 1957 – May 24, 1958 | Charles E. Wilson Neil H. McElroy | Dwight Eisenhower |
| Charles O. Finucane | July 15, 1958 – January 19, 1961 | Neil H. McElroy Thomas S. Gates | Dwight Eisenhower |
| Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower) ||||
| Carlisle P. Runge | February 17, 1961 – July 30, 1962 | Robert S. McNamara | John F. Kennedy |
| Norman S. Paul | August 8, 1962 – September 30, 1965 | Robert S. McNamara | John F. Kennedy Lyndon Johnson |
| Thomas D. Morris | October 1, 1965 – August 31, 1967 | Robert S. McNamara | Lyndon Johnson |
| Alfred B. Fitt | October 9, 1967 – December 31, 1967 | Robert S. McNamara | Lyndon Johnson |
| Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) ||||
| Alfred B. Fitt | January 1, 1968 – February 20, 1969 | Robert S. McNamara Clark M. Clifford Melvin R. Laird | Lyndon Johnson Richard Nixon |
| Roger T. Kelley | March 3, 1969 – June 1, 1973 | Melvin R. Laird Elliot L. Richardson | Richard Nixon |
| Carl W. Clewlow (Acting) | June 1, 1973 – September 1, 1973 | Elliot L. Richardson James R. Schlesinger | Richard Nixon |
| William K. Brehm | September 1, 1973 – March 18, 1976 | James R. Schlesinger Donald H. Rumsfeld | Richard Nixon Gerald Ford |
| David P. Taylor | July 7, 1976 – February 12, 1977 | Donald H. Rumsfeld Harold Brown | Gerald Ford Jimmy Carter |
| Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower, Reserve Affairs, and Logistics) ||||
| John P. White | May 11, 1977 – October 31, 1978 | Harold Brown | Jimmy Carter |
| Robert B. Pirie, Jr. | June 17, 1979 – January 20, 1981 | Harold Brown | Jimmy Carter |
| Lawrence J. Korb | May 4, 1981 – January 12, 1984 | Caspar W. Weinberger | Ronald Reagan |
| Assistant Secretary of Defense (Reserve Affairs) ||||
| Jim Webb | May 3, 1984 - April 10, 1987 | Caspar W. Weinberger | Ronald Reagan |
| Stephen M. Duncan | October 26, 1987 - January 20, 1993 | Caspar W. Weinberger Frank C. Carlucci III William H. Taft IV (Acting) Richard B. Cheney | Ronald Reagan George H. W. Bush |
| Deborah R. Lee | June 1, 1993 - April 11, 1998 | Leslie Aspin, Jr. William J. Perry William S. Cohen | Bill Clinton |
| Charles L. Cragin | April 12, 1998 - August 3, 1999 (Acting) August 4, 1999 - May 31, 2001 (PDASD, in charge) | William S. Cohen Donald H. Rumsfeld | Bill Clinton George W. Bush |
| Thomas F. Hall | October 9, 2002 - April 2009 | Donald H. Rumsfeld Robert M. Gates | George W. Bush Barack Obama |
| Dennis M. McCarthy | June 25, 2009 - April 19, 2011 | Robert M. Gates | Barack Obama |
| David McGinnis (Acting) | April 19, 2011 - May 24, 2012 | Leon Panetta | Barack Obama |
| Jessica L. Wright | May 24, 2012 - December 31, 2013 | Leon Panetta | Barack Obama |
| Richard O. Wightman, Jr. (Acting) | January 1, 2014 - August 2015 | Chuck Hagel | Barack Obama |
| Assistant Secretary of Defense (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) ||||
| Todd A. Weiler | May 15, 2016 - January 20, 2017 | Ashton Carter | Barack Obama |
| Stephanie Barna (Acting) | January 20, 2017 - July 30, 2018 | James Mattis | Donald Trump |
| Virginia S. Penrod (Acting) | July 31, 2018 - October 22, 2018 | James Mattis | Donald Trump |
| James N. Stewart | October 22, 2018 - December 13, 2019 | James Mattis Mark Esper | Donald Trump |
| Virginia S. Penrod (Acting/Performing the Duties of) | December 13, 2019 - May 2, 2022 | Mark Esper Lloyd Austin | Donald Trump Joe Biden |
| Thomas A. Constable (Performing the Duties of) | May 2, 2022 - April 1, 2023 | Lloyd Austin | Joe Biden |
| Grier Martin (Performing the Duties of) | April 1, 2023 - March 13, 2024 | Lloyd Austin | Joe Biden |
| Ronald Keohane | March 13, 2024 – January 20, 2025 | Lloyd Austin | Joe Biden |
| Tim Dill (Acting) | January 20, 2025 - Present | Pete Hegseth | Donald Trump |