The War President

Gary R. Van Horn (Utah)

George Washington said that the best way to assure peace is to be prepared for war. He spoke from experience and from a knowledge of history.

James Madison, in The Federalist, said, "Security against foreign danger is one of the primary objects of civil society. It is an avowed and essential object of the American union."

Under the false assumption that there is no more external threat, first the Bush administration and now the Clinton administration have neatly divided "domestic" and "national security" issues. They have focused on "domestic" issues, slashing the defense budget (a constitutional function of the federal government) and diverting these funds to a host of social programs (for which the federal government has no constitutional authority.)

But this division is false. As Alexander Hamilton pointed out, "No government could give us tranquility and happiness at home, which did not possess sufficient stability and strength to make us respectable abroad."

Enemies a continent away can now bring destruction upon the United States using weapons such as ballistic missiles with nuclear, biological or chemical (NBC) warheads. Twenty-five nations already possess ballistic missiles. Our Department of Defense (DOD) estimates that in less than two years, nine developing countries could have nuclear weapons, thirty could have chemical weapons, and ten could have biological weapons. The CIA estimates that five more countries could be nuclear powers.

Remember also that right now a Russia with twenty-five thousand nuclear warheads could destroy America in an afternoon. We do not have a ballistic missile defense (BMD), thanks to Peacenik Democrats and liberal Republicans in Congress and in the White House.

Since fiscal year (FY) 1985, military budgets have declined by more than a third. Research and development has been cut by more than half and procurement has been slashed by more than two-thirds.

• We are now spending the least in forty years on new weapons and  equipment.

• By next year, the Navy will be the smallest in 60 years, down to 346  ships from nearly 600 in 1991.

• The Navy does not have single new-design aircraft in the development or production stage, the first time since 1928.

• Tank procurement has disappeared almost entirely.

• A third of all military personnel will be cut by next year.

• Defense budgets will be less than 3% of this country’s GDP next year,  less than at any time since 1940.

Under Clinton, the Department of Energy (DOE) closed the Office of New Production Reactors, which ensured our long-term need for tritium. Tritium is a radioactive gas essential for every modern American nuclear weapon. Without it, they will not perform reliably and as specified. Tritium loses half its strength in twelve years. Unless replaced periodically, nuclear weapons become useless. Because of this action by the Clinton administration, a U.S. President may someday soon face a nuclear crisis and be unable to respond to a nuclear strike… and our enemies will know it!

Bill Clinton, in a very real sense, is a War President. By weakening our armed forces, either by neglect or by intent, he is leaving us naked before our enemies. What ambitious aggressor will be able to resist the temptation to attack a rich, fat, and weak America?

The present congressional leadership is apparently in agreement with this vitiation of our defenses. So are many Congressmen and Senators, both Democrat and Republican. Depending upon motive, you could say that this is mass folly, gross incompetence…, or bipartisan treason.

Bill Clinton, in a very real sense, is the War President. If his policies are continued, Americans will be left with only two choices: To kneel among the captives or lie among the slain.