Long, Robert Lyman John, ADM

Following his retirement from the navy in 1983, Long was active in a variety of governmental and the military affairs. He served as the principal executive of President Ronald Reagan's fact-finding committee, the Long Commission, that investigated the 1983 Beirut barracks bombing attack that killed 241 United States Marines. The commission's report was widely praised for being tough and direct. The report found senior military officials responsible for security lapses and blamed the military chain of command for the disaster.

Long participated in the Security Review Commission led by General Richard G. Stilwell that grew out of the Walker spy case and which was tasked with review of security procedures conducted for security clearances. He was a member of an American election observer team sent to the Philippines in 1986 and headed by Senator Richard Lugar to observe the presidential election contest involving Ferdinand Marcos and Corazon Aquino. Long was teamed with the then first-term senator from Massachusetts John Kerry. He joined the Defense Policy Board in 1984, and was a part of the Advisory Committee on Command and Control of Nuclear Weapons, chaired by Jeane Kirkpatrick.

Long served as President of the Naval Academy Alumni Association from 1991 to 1994. He also served on several corporate boards, including Northrop, ConTel and GTE.