Amid growing threats from rivals like China, the United States military is determined to invest in new forms of defense and abandon those that no longer meet its needs.

On that list: a combat ship rife with flaws. But getting rid of the ship has proved unexpectedly difficult.

Guest: Eric Lipton, an investigative reporter for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• After years of crippling problems and a changing mission, the Navy pushed to retire nine of its newest ships. Then the lobbying started.

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday. 

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