This is not to say that national security is unimportant. There is a need, however, for conscientious national debate on our military as well as economic priorities—not just of a Strategic Defense Initiative, but also an equivalent Strategic Competitive Initiative. World stability may be more affected by increasing confrontational relations among trading partners than by the threat of nuclear weapons.
I believe that a strong U.S. military deterrent force is vital to the free world. I also believe that our Trident fleet represents a more than adequate deterrent. Hence, even if SDI were to be shown technically and strategically sound (and I have great reservations that it is), I would not have given it the priority it has been assigned.
The issue is once again priorities. The SDI debate is now taking place at much too late a stage in the policy-making process. The evolution of SDI reflects the way ...
