Shipping lanes cane easily be protected by Cruisers and submarines, especially with the political will to back them up with rapid and complete destruction.
DO you really want to put boots on the ground anywhere in the rest of the world right now. One or two strong carrier groups can handle the rest of the dirty laundry once the majority of the enemy has been killed. Just look at the road of death into Baghdad for that lesson.
Nothing says power like a carrier battle group. This is part and parcel of the gunboat diplomacy that gave the US its status in the world. There are far too many interests to protect and too few cruisers. Subs cannot protect lanes, they need to be visible.
As for BOTG, we go when/where we are needed and we need the ability to sustain combat ops for a minimum of 30 days (MEU) or 180 days (MEF). ARGs are the only way to accomplish this.