Walter L. Isenhour

The Air Force Officer and the Constitution Walter L. Isenhour

The oath of office binds Air Force officers to sacrifice their lives and the lives of those under their command to "support and defend the Constitution; against all enemies, foreign and domestic." A robust knowledge of the Constitution must be a prerequisite for commissioned officer service. By clearly mapping the line of responsibility from the Constitution through the oath to the officer and demonstrating the moral and ethical demands placed on the officer by the contractual nature of the oath of office, a clear case is demonstrated that the Constitution must command a keen, common, standard understanding by newly commissioned USAF officers. An overview of the variety and lack of a minimum standard of constitutional content in commissioning source curricula along with a demonstrated lack of constitutional knowledge by Officer Training School graduates cements the need for a USAF-wide standard. Lastly, a recommendation is made to establish a minimum standard for constitutional mastery to ensure Air Force leaders fulfill their ethical obligation to ensure future officers have the best possible understanding of the Constitution, so they may successfully fulfill their oath to support and defend the Constitution.