Who Would Dare Attack America?
Over the weekend Heritage’s Jim Carafano attended a conference on missile defense challenges in the 21st century, which was sponsored by the Claremont Institute. One question was repeatedly asked, “Who would dare fire a ballistic missile at the United States?”
One surprising answer that came up again and again: Iran. Now, we all know that Iran has ballistic missiles and is trying to develop a nuclear weapon, but its missiles do not have the range to reach to the United States. In 1998, however, Iran test-fired a missile off a platform in the Caspian Sea — odd, considering Iranian missiles can reach likely targets in the Middle East from land-based sites. Iran has also held several missile tests, detonating the missiles at the apogee (that’s the highest point) of the missile’s flight path — again odd, given that missile tests are usually designed to see if missiles can fly all the way to their targets.
These strange experiments, however, could mean something, according to the scientists and scholars at the conference. If a missile were hid on an unassuming commercial cargo ship, it could sail near U.S. territory without ever being inspected by anyone. A short-range missile could be fired off a ship, and if Iran detonated a nuclear weapon high over the United States, it would produce an EMP-effect, a blast of electromagnetic waves that would short-circuit almost every electrical component on the ground below from the electric grid that powers the nation to the pumps that deliver water to our homes to electronic circuits that allow you to start car. This kind of attack would turn America into an 18th century barter economy in minutes. Is that what Iranian leaders meant when they said they could envision a world without America? We just don’t know.
With troubling developments like this, it is amazing that Americans are sanguine about the lack of adequate progress in building comprehensive missile defenses. Ironically, polls show again and again that most Americans want to be protected from ballistic missile threats. On the other hand, Congress has little interest in making the issue a priority.
But because lawmakers in Washington know Americans care about the issue, they pretend to take the issue seriously while trying to do as little as possible. Many in Congress would prefer to rely on negotiating or explaining threats away. While the Constitution clearly states “providing for the common defense” is Washington’s first duty, members of Congress think they know better.
Tags: ballistic missile, ballistic missiles, Iran, missile defense