'Dear 45 . . .'

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is pushing for the next president to take bold steps to reform the Defense Department acquisition system.

"We urge your incoming administration to avoid the temptation of short-term additive fixes and boldly reinvent DOD’s acquisition system," according to the chamber's May 12 "Dear 45" letter signed by retired Marine Corps Gen. James Jones, former national security adviser and chief of U.S. European Command.

"We believe that structurally realigning the military acquisition commands to gain maximum efficiency and that thoughtfully deregulating the procurement process is the key to spurring a revitalized and competitive industrial base to serve U.S. national security and prosperity," the letter continues.

Jones points out to a recent Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments study that showed the Pentagon spent $46 billion on programs between 2001 and 2011 that never became operational.

"So we urge your incoming administration to avoid the temptation of short-term additive fixes and boldly reinvent DOD’s acquisition system," the letter states. "We believe that structurally realigning the military acquisition commands to gain maximum efficiency and that thoughtfully deregulating the procurement process is the key to spurring a revitalized and competitive industrial base to serve U.S. national security and prosperity."