The G-man has a write up on the Amphibious Fleet that must be read. Check it out here but this part is telling...
The amphibious fleet of the US is in high demand because they are the most flexible ships in the US arsenal, but is seen as and is given a low priority by leaders in the US Navy with the total amphibious force now 15% below clearly articulated bare minimum size and 25% below stated requirement size. For whatever reason, both Congress and the DoD are watching the Avondale shipyard that builds amphibious ships go out of business due to lack of work.
What is the plan to address these problems, because all indications are there is no plan.