Should Army and Marines (or components of) consolidate?

As one with over 20 yrs in and having spent time, well over a year total, on army bases for schools and exercises, I would love (yet hate) it if the Ground Arm of the U.S. military were one. A good measure of excess would then be eliminated (think IT systems and maint, contractor support agencies, and other support activities that could be consolidated, etc). That said, integration would be a nightmare for many years and establishing standards would be a huge sticking point on both sides. Are we giving the Corps' jets to the army? Will the UDP/MEU rotation expand to the so many more units? Will we get rid of Specialist? Will E-4 and E-5 have the authority to lead Solines? And on and on. I would not want to lose the many things that the Corps has established. A little disjointed and "rant-y" but there it is.

From my understanding, the POTUS can mobilize the Marines without consulting or getting approval from Congress.

So from this observation point, the Marines do have a very long and proud history and a higher standard for service and acceptance and that is to their credit,
But to quote McCain " I understand we have an Army to control the Ground, and a Air Force to control the Air, But why does that Navy that controls the sea have a Army and an Air Force in the Marines ?".

They have the best uniforms, advertising machine and attitude but..

This could save Hundreds of Millions of dollars ...

I see it as an inevitability regardless of how we feel about the service in which we served. It would be practical and more efficient. Budget wise, which seems to be the main motivation for nearly all decisions when it comes to the military, would be the main reason for this push towards consolidation. It may not happen in our lifetime, but I see the United States Military having land, air, and sea divisions all falling under one force. All air forces would be under one command. Take air capabilities away from the Navy, Marines, and Army. Can you imagine how cost effective that would be? Take away the water capabilities of the Army as well. I think the Army has more boats than the Navy, namely tugs. Finally, consolidate all land forces and maintain the Navy for sea or water operations. I may sound like a cost cutting politician, but given the BRAC along with all of the downsizing, I really don't see an end to the continuation of a smaller force. We all have pride in our service branch and no offense to the Marine Corps, but you are "the few, the proud ", because congress dictates the size of the Corp to be that size. I personally think the Army could use a dose of the Corps sense of pride and motivation. Except for the Cav and Infantry units, I really haven't seen the closeness or cohesion the Corps has. Didn't mean to offend anyone, it's just the way I see it coming. One team, one fight. PS of course, this wouldn't apply to all of the branches special operators. Much respect.

No. Fix the bureaucracy, not the units. The ARMY has their traditions, and the Marine Corps has theirs. Having both units allows diversity in selecting a "family" when you join the Armed Forces. Some people, myself included, just WANT to be a Marine. We joined the Marines to follow the traditions, to be a part of the pride that comes with the Corps. The Army and Marines have similar missions, but they are not the same. Basic training is not the same. Marine Corps failure rate is much higher than the Army's. Their standards, are tougher. They do more, with less. That "Esprit de Corps" would get lost in combining forces. Ultimately, what's the point... Marines are fighters that are stationed on Naval vessels. The integration with Naval command structure, language, and basic knowledge is learned because of that mission, and that allows the Marine Corps to work well with the Navy. This might be lost as well. Plus, there's no way any Marine will ever wear an army cover with pride. Just wont happen. lol Sorry.

The USMC has always had a distinct culture - a warrior ethos that does not blend well with other cultures. It might be tempting, but something invaluable would be lost. The U.S. Army is a big organization and isn't as mobile or adaptive. The Army is designed for other, large scale events. Easier to stick with proven winners. Besides, if they consolidated we'd have to spend all that money teaching Marines to read and write.

First there should ALWAYS be a MARINE CORPS. The question is should it come under the Navy or the Army. Indeed there has been discussion about need for a separate Air Force when indeed they were the Army Air Corps. Discussion goes even further over the Medical corps, Why one for each branch? Why not all Medical personnel in one Branch farmed out to who ever needs what at the time. It is way to cut repetitive waste yet maintain strength as politicians rape the military. So I say lets discuss all of it... from services, to corps to uniform, weapons, vehicle, etc! Cut the POGs, beef up the fighting forces, open opportunities for more and different assignments. Alot of flag grade officers could be cut. This is about being lean and mean... ready to fight on land, sea or air. Obviously keep separate uniforms but get just one style color design Combat Utility uniform for all services with minor differences per branch. Cut the bull and millions wasted on the recent uniform wars. Time to grow up... there is trouble coming... big trouble and we need to play catch up football... so ALL options should be on the table!

Two completely different branches of service.

Forgot one thing. This article is nothing new. The Army has been trying to take over the Marine Corps job for a hundred years now..

The mind set of both the Army and Marines are just too different. A couple of examples, in the Marines you are taught from day one that all Marines are riflemen. It doesn't mater if you're a cook, aircraft mechanic, heavy equipment operator you are first and foremost a grunt. You ma not be training daily in that capacity but if the need arises you have the basic skill set to locate, engage and destroy an enemy. Look at how both organizations view the effective range of just the m16. Army states that the effective range is 300 meters, while the Marines are expected to engage out to 500 meters.