Once-Divisive U.S. Missile Defense System Now Widely Accepted

General James Cartwright

Missile defense has become a main stream issue that is supported by both sides of the aisle in Washington. Seventeen years after Ronald Reagan’s infamous “Star Wars” speech, missile defense has come a long way.  Today, missile defense has become an essential part of the United States and  an idea deeply entrenched in the Defense Department and championed by the Democratic Congress and White House.

Forget “Star Wars,” the futuristic, space-based missile-defense system envisioned by President Ronald Reagan in a speech 17 years ago this week.

Then, the very idea of constructing a high-tech — and highly expensive — shield against incoming Soviet intercontinental ballistic missiles plunged military strategists and politicians into a divisive debate over its feasibility.