In that position, her responsibilities included military construction, installation management, energy and environmental issues, domestic disaster relief and restoration of public infrastructure to the people of Kuwait following Operation Desert Storm.

Prior to being nominated as the Under Secretary of the Navy, she had held the post of CEO of the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) and deputy chairman of its Council of Trustees.

As the Under Secretary of the Navy, Livingstone was cited by General Counsel of the United States Navy, Alberto J. Mora for revoking Department of Defense regulations, authorized by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, that allowed the use of coercive interrogation techniques on detainees at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba.

Her views and mine [in opposition to the treatment and policy] coincided, and she provided great support ..." On January 15, 2003, Rumsfeld suspended authority for the approved interrogation techniques.

[2] Since leaving the Navy, Livingstone has worked as a policy management consultant and has served as a member of the National Security Studies Board of Advisors, a board member of the Procurement Round Table and the NASA Return-to-Flight Task Group for safe return of Space Shuttle flights after the Columbia disaster.