1. US Politics
US Senator Carl Levin, the next chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said that missile defenses would not likely be fielded in President George Bush's current administration. He added that missile defenses should not be deployed at all until tests have proven the system's effectiveness. Levin said, "I don't think the technology is likely to develop fast enough, even if he decided to violate the treaty," referring to the 1972 ABM Treaty. Levin said that he planned to "make sure that we look at the realities of a national missile defense, not just look at that one threat that has been focused on, the North Korea threat, or just the threat from ballistic missiles." "The terrorist threats to us, which are reflected in World Trade Center-type attacks," he added, "Attacks on our embassies, on the Cole. Perhaps using weapons of mass destruction. These are the most likely threats we face." Frank J. Gaffney Jr., a former Defense Department official during the Reagan administration and now president of the Center for Security Policy, a conservative defense analysis group, described Levin's technical requirements for deploying missile defense as "a delaying action."
"Missile Defenses Need More Tests, Key Senator Says"
Frank J. Gaffney, a former Defense Department official during the Reagan administration and now president of the Center for Security Policy, writes that when Democratic Senators Biden and Levin take control of their committees, they will work to interfere with the Bush administration's missile-defense programs, just as they interfered with Bush administration appointees who would be responsible for missile defense and arms-control policy. To move forward his missile defense agenda, Gaffney quotes William Kristol argument in an op-ed article in the Washington Post, "Bush will have no choice but to follow Reagan's example. He will have to show that on a few key issues he can use the bully pulpit to strike fear into Democratic hearts. Any successful president needs to be not just liked but also feared." Gaffney argues that Bush should: state that there is an immediate threat to US national security from ballistic missiles; deploy defenses immediately in the form the questionably effective US Navy Aegis system to deter rogue states; fund short-term upgrades to improve the Aegis' effectiveness within the next six months; withdraw from the 1972 ABM Treaty as neither withdrawal nor current funding needs Congressional approval; then seek approval of Americans to further fund improvements.
"Changed Circumstances in Senate Require Bush to Move Now on Missile Defense"
US Senator Jack Reed spoke at the National Defense University and said that as the US turns from the protection of Mutually Assured Destruction towards the pursuit of missile defenses, polls show that most Americans think the US already has such a shield. He argues that the National Missile Defense Act of 1999 is not a mandate to develop a National Missile Defense, but only a competing vision for US security. Reed states that many states have short-range missiles that are a threat to our forces and allies overseas, but DPRK is the only "rogue" state with a long-range missile nearly developed that is capable of hitting the US. He argues that this justifies further development and deployment of Theater Missile Defense now; investment in National Missile Defense should the need arise and be justified by its complete security impact; and that the US should better pursue homeland defense through investment in non-proliferation programs with Russia and reducing the threat the US faces from accidental launches by Russia or the PRC.
"US Senator Jack Reed: Speech to the National Defense University"
