The top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee said resources wasted during the partial government shutdown would be better directed toward “pressing national security priorities,” such as a new missile defense system.
“Listening to national security experts, and the President’s own remarks, it seems clear that an effective high-tech missile defense system is a higher national security priority than building a wall across the southern border,” Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., said in a statement. “As the Trump shutdown drags on, it wastes over $1.2 billion per week — money that could be better spent investing in real, pressing national security priorities like troops’ readiness and technological advances.”
The partial government shutdown has lingered for almost a month due to a dispute over border wall funding. While President Trump has sought more than $5 billion for a border wall to deter illegal immigration and boost national security, Democrats have resisted his request.
But amid the chaos from the partial shutdown, Trump focused on another national security issue on Thursday.
As he called for a study of space-based weapons, Trump announced that the U.S. would move to create a missile defense program that would protect the U.S. against harmful missiles. The proposal would require installing sensors in orbit around the earth so suspicious missiles could be identified and then shot down with land- or ship-based interceptors.
“We are committed to establishing a missile defense program that can shield every city in the United States,” Trump said at the Pentagon Thursday.
“My upcoming budget will invest in a space-based missile defense layer,” Trump said. “It’s new technology. It’s ultimately going to be a very, very big part of our defense, and obviously our offense.”
Reed acknowledged that there were multiple benefits of a strong missile defense system, but simultaneously admitted that hefty costs would accompany such a system.
“Missile defense is part of our multi-layered defense strategy to protect Americans and our allies,” Reed said. “An effective missile defense system can serve as a deterrent to conflict, protect our forward-deployed forces and the homeland, and create an opening for diplomacy. But it’s not a magic bulletproof shield and it comes with a considerable price tag.”
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Adam Smith, D-Wash., also offered some stipulations the missile defense program must follow. Smith said it was paramount that money is only spent on “reliable and rigorously tested” programs prior to their deployment and that the U.S. should reject policies that could spark a nuclear arms race.
“While it is essential that we continue investing in proven missile defense efforts, I am concerned that this missile defense review could lead to greater investment in areas that do not follow these principles, such as a space-based interceptor layer that has been studied repeatedly and found to be technologically challenging and prohibitively expensive,” Smith said.
Meanwhile, acting Secretary of Defense Pat Shanahan vowed that the Pentagon was prepared to craft the missile shield to protect the U.S.
“Mr. President, we are ready for this task,” Shanahan said. “This is the department of ‘get stuff done.’”
