Feed: Obama, Gates ignore national security failure - AggScore: 12.8

Obama, Gates ignore national security failure

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blockquoteemThis is a tremendous setback for the testing of this complicated security system. ememMuch more troubling is the confidence in the GBI system that is currently deployed in Alaska and California. emblockquotecaption id alignalignleft width107 captionWith more nations seeking nuclear weapons and delivery systems, the Obama administration is more concerned with how many nuclear weapons we have. Photo DoD img srchttpcdn2b.examiner.comsitesdefaultfilesstyleslargehash4551missile0.jpg alt width107 height131 captionWhile patting himself and his warfighting team on the back over successes inAfghanistan, President Barack Obama as well as Defense Secretary Robert Gates is ignoring the recent defense failure on Wednesday.divA longrange interceptor missile fired by the U.S. militaryfailed tohit andneutralizeits target in a test over the Pacific Ocean.divdivMany military and security experts are wondering when Obama and Gates will stop worrying about treaties like START and startmaking certain what weapons systems we do have are operating properly, said political strategist Mike Baker.divThe Vandenberg Air Force Base conducted the missile defense test on Wednesday with disappointing results. It launched a GroundBased Interceptor GBI missile that failedto destroy an incoming intermediaterange target missile launched from Kwajalein Atoll.While the White House staff and the Defense Secretary and military chiefs of staff were silent, the Pentagons Missile Defense Agency MDAspokesman Richard Lehner issued a statement Program officials will conduct an extensive investigation to determine the cause of the failure to intercept the target.The next flight test will be determined after identification of the cause of the failure, Lehner added.Unfortunately, according to defense experts, the GBI is the only longrange missile the U.S. possesses. And this latest test is the third major failure in two years and thefirst test firingconductedin January 2010 also failed to take out its target.U.S. military and intelligence agencies have testified in Congressional hearings that the ballistic missile threat to the United States from North Korea is real and that Iran could have a capability as early as 2015 to strike the U.S. homeland. There are GroundBased Interceptors GBI deployed today that the Administration has deemed necessary to protect our nation from longrange ballistic missile threats. These deployed GBIs also help dissuade North Korea and Iran from developing longrange missiles that could strike the U.S.Lehner said that both the longrange and intermediaterange missiles werelaunched properly with all radar and sensor systems operating. However, the longrange missile failed to kill its target.This is a tremendous setback for the testing of this complicated system. Much more troubling is the confidence in the GBI system that is currently deployed in Alaska and California. The thirty deployed interceptors have a similar configuration to the one in todays test, said Riki Ellison, chairman and founder of the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance.Modernization of the GBI system would seem to be necessary, as well as a strong look at the testing culture and environment, Ellison added.divSTART MAY BECOME AMERICAS FINISHdivdivAccording to Frank Gaffney, head of Center for Security Policy, the new S.T.A.R.T. is bad for America becausedivdiv It forces the U.S. to reduce its stockpile of nuclear weapons, and makes our existing nuclear arsenal unreliabledivdiv It gravely reduces the ability of the U.S. to defend itself by banning the use of missiles to shoot down incoming missilesdivdiv It compromises our sovereignty by creating a Bilateral Consultative Commissionwhich could open the U.S. up to more restrictions without Senate approvaldivdiv It requires sharing missile defense secrets with Russiawho could then use that intelligence against us, or share it with rogue nationsdivdiv It abandons the trust but verify monitoring deal with Russia, undermining our ability to know what kind of missiles they are developing and testingdivdiv It forces the U.S. to eliminate as many as 150 delivery vehicles, even though they may be used for transporting conventional weapons, so it harms other military actionsand it allows Russia to ADD more than 130!div It does nothing to address the danger of nuclear terrorism, ignoring the threats we face from Iran and North Korea