Congress Eyes the Tip of the Spear: What Their New Report Says About SOF’s Future

On September 16, 2025, the Congressional Research Service (CRS) dropped its latest update of U.S. Special Operations Forces (SOF): Background and Considerations for Congress . If you work around the enterprise—or cover it—you know CRS isn’t in the business of hot takes. It builds the map, then hands it to lawmakers and staffers who decide where the convoy goes next. This edition arrives while Washington debates SOF end strength, reorganizations in the Air Force special ops community, and what roles elite units might play at home in a world where cartels act like hybrid states.

In short: CRS just put the playbook on the table.

What’s in the report (in plain English)

CRS opens with the basics: USSOCOM sits at MacDill and commands roughly 70,000 people across