Last week’s test of a Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) ended in failure. On Friday, Congressman Mike Rogers (R-AL03) released a statement in which he said that the failed test shows that the United States should begin developing a long-term replacement for the legacy missiles which have served this country as its primary nuclear deterrent for over a half-century.
“Minuteman III was initially designed in the 1960s and deployed in the 1970s, with an expected service life of a decade,” Rep. Rogers said. “It has served our country well and we will continue to depend on it to deter nuclear war until the 2030s, but this week’s test is a stark reminder that nothing lasts forever. Despite this fact, the far-left disarmament community has continued their push to delay the recapitalization of the land-leg of our triad and life-extend these legacy systems instead of replacing them. This debate has grown increasingly detached from reality; further life extension is simply infeasible, and 50-year-old missiles are not the answer to China and Russia’s expanding nuclear arsenals. We must modernize our aging nuclear deterrent and replace the Minuteman III missile – as well as the rest of our nuclear enterprise – with modern systems.”
The U.S. Air Force and Space Force had to terminate the test of the Minuteman missile over the Pacific Ocean after an anomaly occurred with the craft. The missile was launched from Vanderberg Space Force Base in California.
Dramatic increases in what the United States spends on nuclear weapons had been part of the bipartisan plan for 2024, but partisan disagreements over Ukraine, the size of the deficit, IRS agents, abortion, border security, and other topics, as well as petty internal GOP squabbling over House leadership has delayed passage of both the defense budget and the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for nearly six weeks and there is no sign that either gets done any time soon.
The United States nuclear deterrent is based on a triad system. ICBMs, primarily the aging Minuteman III missiles, are one leg of that triad. The second is 25 Ohio class ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs). Those will be replaced with the new Columbia class starting in the 2030s. The third leg are bombers comprised of the aging B-52s, increasingly obsolescent B-1s, and the stealth B-2s. A new stealth bomber – the Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider, is under development. The deployment of anti-satellite weaponry combined with nuclear warheads on hypersonic missiles launched from ground launchers, bombers, and submarines is potentially a technological game changer that could alter the global balance of power, particularly if the major powers break out of the START III treaty – as appears increasingly likely.
Rogers is serving in his eleventh term representing Alabama’s Third Congressional District. Rogers has qualified for reelection. At this point, Rogers is facing one qualified primary challenger but no general election opponent. The deadline for 2024 major party qualifying is Friday at 5:00 p.m.
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