My take is this:
1) If I had the full resources, and companies that would LOVE to sell tens of thousands of new battle rifles to the USA Military, LE etc.... I'd open competition for a replacement of the M16/M4, and even dare I say it, a new "common" intermediate round that is lighter to carry than the .308/7.62, but delivers down range accuracy in line with the current M16/M4, but more energy similar to the larger rounds.
2) The M14 was/is a very good rifle, and since the Mini is based on it, the foundation is solid, but the application has been limited by a few choices made for this "civillian" market carbine. (Barrel too thin/long, poor sight options, limited high capacity mags etc.)
3) The Stoner design has some great features, but over the years, the proven reality is, a gas impingement design fails when it counts, and is a cleaning nightmare. The AK, and other gas piston designs have proven time and time again, that they run when dirty, are easy to clean, and let's face it, KISS is important when you are training soldiers to maintain, and use their weapons.
So, where does that leave the Mini14/Mini30 v/s the AR/M16 debate?
Well, I'd have to say, that to get a stainless steel stamped reciever AK with a match grade barrel, would be awesome, it's not out there, so I have a Stainless Mini30 to shoot the 7.62x39 round.
And after many decades of Bushmaster M4gery ownership, and shooting, I was happy as could be to get rid of that rifle, and now I have a FNH FS2000 Tactical, that incorporates a clean running bull pup design that has yet to fail me in any way related to the weapon. (The magazines need to have an anti-tilt follower, and that is the only issue I have come across. Trigger feel is fine, accuracy is excellent, and since it's a bull pup, it's short, yet has a long barrel, so you get battle rifle ballistics from a M4 sized package.)
In a perfect world, the next US Military weapon would have a piston driven, bull pup assault rifle that shoots a harder hitting, yet just as lightweight to carry round with plenty of space for all the stuff we see clamped to the weapons our troops use today. (Lights, lasers, holo optics and magnifiers etc.)
A good contender is the P90. I also like my FS2000, and think the F2000 tactical has some very good points. Many of the worlds armies have gone to bull pup designs with good results, yet the USA resists this change, and I'm not sure why.
The fast mag change of the current weapon is not something that saves lives over having a light weight, reliable weapon that packs a punch in CQB and out to 500 yards, and that/those weapons exist today. (F2000, AUG, Enfield, Tavor etc.)
Israel makes a great bull pup design that has options for many roles in the military. Why can't the USA move to that format is beyond me.
Sure the FNH SCAR and other "new" M16/M4 varients are excellent rifles, but why put the action out in front of the trigger, and limit the barrel in the process to have a shorter weapon platform?
You can never have a bullet that's too fast and accurate in combat I'd think. And the only way to get it that fast is with longer barrels, or make it really light weight. Why not some of both? A 100gr bullet in 7.5mm on a 30mm case would be just about right on an 18" fluted barrel, in a bull pup with standard 40 round mags made of stainless steel, coated in teflon. (Or use the very reliable, and very light design from the P90, and stack say 80 rounds into a new bull pup design with an 18" barrel along the same lines?)
Again, just saying, the USA has massive companies that would LOVE to sell them rifles, and make the USA military the envy of the world when it comes to a new battle rifle, and bullet design that does it all.
7.5X30mm would be the dog's dangles, with 100gr plastic sabot bullets going 3800fps out the muzzle, in an 8.5 lb weapon that incorporates laser/light and holo sight as standard, with a open rail tatical option as just that, an option. (Could see a version setup with slower, subsonic rounds of 250gr, in the same case, going 1050fps in a shorter 10 or 12" barrel for dedicated CQB use, and special ops where long range shooting would be minimal, and a heavy, yet quiet round is needed.)
It would be slightly wider than the P90, and the mags would be slightly longer, but since it's not a PDW, but a Carbine, that's fine. (And have the rounds drop out the lower just like the P90 does, zero issues with what hand you shoot from, or working around buildings/doors/vehicles etc.)
Heck, make it simple blow back operation, and really keep it simple....
Just talking out loud...
But if you guys have shot the PS90, or P90, you know what I'm talking about, it's light, simple and damn accurate.