COMMENTARY FROM THE DIRECTOR,


ACQUISITION CAREER MANAGEMENT LTG MICHAEL E . WILLIAMSON


SPREADING THE WORD


Join the AAWHonorsTeOath campaign to share the good work of Army acquisition professionals. I 104


often write in this column about ways we are working to increase the professionalism of the Army Acquisition Workforce (AAW) through training, education and lead- ership development. Our people are our greatest asset. It is


important that we invest in the men and women who develop and procure capabilities to ensure that our Soldiers always have the decisive advantage.


With this column, I am interested in hearing from you, our AAW members. Whether military or civilian, you began your career by taking an oath to support and defend the U.S. Consti- tution. Your outstanding work is often done behind the scenes but is vital to the success of our Soldiers. I invite you individually or collectively as teams to record and submit 15- to 30-second videos that answer the question, “How do you honor the oath of office each day?” If you prefer to submit a picture or collage with a caption or a short written statement, those are acceptable as well. Additional information about the AAWHonorsTeOath campaign is at http://www.army.mil/asaalt.


Te oath we take serves as a solemn reminder of our duties and responsibilities in service to our country. While the Constitution


Army AL&T Magazine July-September 2015


contains an oath of office only for the president, it specifies that other officials “shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to sup- port this Constitution.” During the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress established oaths for the enlisted men and officers of the Continental Army. Te first oath under the Con- stitution was approved by an act of Congress in 1789. It applied to all commissioned officers, noncommissioned officers and privates in service of the United States. Although the enlisted oath remained unchanged until 1950, the officer oath has been modified throughout history until the adoption of its present wording in 1959.


Te oath for civilians dates from 1861. At a time of uncertain and shifting loyalties, President Abraham Lincoln ordered all federal employees within the executive branch to take an oath. Members of Congress echoed the president’s action by enacting legislation requiring employees to take an oath in support of the Union. In 1862, Congress revised the oath and required “every person elected or appointed to any office … under the Govern- ment of the United States” to swear or affirm that they had never engaged in criminal or disloyal conduct. Tose government employees who failed to take the 1862 “Ironclad Test Oath”


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