Trump's missile defense system is nothing but fool's gold

There can be wisdom in cliche. More than 120 years after philosopher George Santayana wrote, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it,” his well-known phrase remains an essential guide for national defense. Case in point: The French failed to draw the proper lessons from the brutal trench warfare of World War I and constructed a better, yet still fixed, static defense in the 1930s — the Maginot Line — that was simply bypassed by the Germans on their way to Paris during World War II.

It can also be a mistake to learn too much from a recent success, applying those lessons to different circumstances. For example, Israel has been remarkably successful at ballistic missile defense with its “Iron Dome,” built to defend against short- and medium-range missile attacks from its regional enemies. So President Trump has launched his program to expand current U.S. missile defenses and build a “Golden Dome” — similar in concept, but designed to defend the entire U.S. against long-range missile attacks. And already, with little national debate, Congress is allocating $38 billion this year toward the estimated $175-billion final cost, to be completed by January 2029 — its timing a parting gift from the president (assuming he leaves the White House on schedule).

Is this modern shield a sustainable or wise choice for allocating U.S. defense dollars? It assumes that the Israeli missile defense against threats in its neighborhood can be replicated by the United States — a nation nearly 450 times the size of Israel — against global threats including the world’s big boys, Russia and China. That assumption could produce a massively expensive venture, not “golden” but instead built of fool’s gold, with as little thought for the future strategic environment as the French gave to the Maginot Line.

The vision of an American public protected from nuclear disaster is alluring — and the threats are real. Ballistic missiles are a clear danger to U.S. allies and bases and our homeland. Russia has hundreds of long-range ballistic missiles that can strike the U.S. within minutes; China is enhancing its arsenal of long-range weapons and has a huge arsenal of shorter-range missiles that could hit Taiwan and other U.S. allies and bases in the Asia-Pacific region.

Ominous, yes. But even more important in assessing the Golden Dome is that today’s threats are rapidly evolving, beginning with long-range ballistic missiles. These systems traveling at significantly greater speeds are inherently harder to defend against than the threats facing Israel. Russia, China and others are also investing in advanced missiles designed to evade defenses through their trajectory, maneuverability and the deployment of decoys.

https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2025-08-18/trump-golden-dome-cost-america