What to Expect from President Trump on Defense

What to Expect from President Trump on Defense

- “Let every nation know, whether it wishes us well or ill, that we shall pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty.”

                                                                                    President John F. Kennedy

 Peace through strength is more than a slogan; it has been a time-tested American policy in the wake of World War II that kept the old Soviet Union from overrunning Western Europe and Communist China from enslaving Asia.  The international balance of military power, the essence of diplomacy, is a reality of human existence that regulates the behavior of nations on the world stage.  This Pax Americana has undeniably benefitted the United States economically, but more importantly, it has assured the survival of individual freedom that we and most of our allies enjoy.  Much of the world’s population still lives under oppression and can only envy our lifestyle from afar. 

It has been an exercise in irrationality for us to have allowed our military forces to fall into disrepair; ominous warnings from our military leaders are unmistakable.  Any American geo-political power vacuum in the world, created by default or by feebleness, is instantly filled by our adversaries.  Hence, we see Russia pursuing aggressive expansionism in Eastern Europe, China claiming ownership of part of the sea, North Korea presuming to threaten us with nuclear weapons, and Iran inflicting havoc in the Middle East and Africa.  Our new government administration is committed to the comprehensive reconstruction of American military forces and it will likely lead to a more peaceful world.

  From a military side, our nuclear balance of terror with Russia and China continues to be based on the policy of Mutual Assured Destruction (MAD), and our triad of nuclear arsenals on land, air, and sea are in serious need of upgrading some computer systems controlling these weapons are still operating with floppy disks.  In our dealings with Iran and North Korea, the best deterrent is our capacity to inflict a quick knockout blow with stealth bombers and cruise missiles.  It should be clear that their roads, bridges, and power plants…are push buttons away from destruction and that a thousand points of pain shall be the instant consequence of any overt aggression.

21st-century technology will require us to increase our missile defense, our cyber security, and our satellite protection systems, as well as to develop offensive anti-satellite capabilities.  Our greatest weapon, however, is our economic power, which the new administration will strengthen.  Russia, with an economy the size of Italy, is vulnerable to economic pressure and will serve to counter-balance China’s growing military might and territorial overreach in Asia. 

Our cost of defense will inevitably increase, but some savings will be found in controlling waste.  Our new president shows little tolerance for the runaway cost of weapons and for superfluous military bases and equipment.  He will also get our allies to begin paying their fair share of our common defense.  Finally, our returning warriors, our veterans, will be receiving much better and long-delayed treatment from our government.  Whether the Veterans Administration Health System is fully or partly privatized is yet to be determined, but the age of mediocre care for veterans is coming to an end.

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