Trump picks $175-B Golden Dome defense shield design
WASHINGTON—President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he had selected a design for the $175-billion Golden Dome missile defense shield and named a Space Force general to head the ambitious program aimed at blocking threats from China and Russia.
The program, first ordered by Trump in January, aims to create a network of satellites, perhaps numbering in the hundreds, to detect, track and potentially intercept incoming missiles.
Trump told a White House press conference that US Space Force General Michael Guetlein would be the lead program manager for an effort widely viewed as the keystone to Trump’s military planning.
Golden Dome will “protect our homeland,” Trump said, adding that Canada had said it wanted to be part of it.
In a statement, the office of Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he and his ministers were discussing a new security and economic relationship with their American counterparts.
“These discussions naturally include strengthening NORAD and related initiatives such as the Golden Dome,” it added.
‘Star Wars’
Trump said the defense shield, which would cost some $175 billion, should be operational by the end of his term in January 2029, but industry experts were less certain of that timeframe and the cost.
“Ronald Reagan wanted it many years ago, but they didn’t have the technology,” Trump said, referring to the space-based missile defense system, popularly called “Star Wars,” that Reagan proposed.
The Golden Dome program faces both political scrutiny and funding uncertainty.
“The new datapoint is the $175 billion, but the question remains, over what period of time. It’s probably 10 years,” said Tom Karako of the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
SpaceX concerns
Silicon Valley and US software expertise can be leveraged to bring advances, while also using existing missile defense systems, he added.
This month, the Congressional Budget Office estimated that Golden Dome could cost as much as $831 billion over two decades.
Democratic lawmakers have voiced concern about the procurement process and involvement of Trump ally Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which has emerged as a frontrunner alongside Palantir and Anduril to build key components of the system.
“The new autonomous space-age defense ecosystem is more about Silicon Valley than it is about ‘big metal,’” Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota said at the White House event.
“So what’s exciting about this is it makes it available to everybody to participate, to compete.”
“Big metal” refers to legacy defense contractors.
Israel’s Iron Dome
The Golden Dome idea was inspired by Israel’s land-based Iron Dome defense shield that protects it from missiles and rockets.
Trump’s Golden Dome is much more extensive, including a massive array of surveillance satellites and a separate fleet of attacking satellites that would shoot down offensive missiles soon after lift-off.
Tuesday’s announcement kicks off the Pentagon’s effort to test and ultimately buy the missiles, systems, sensors and satellites that will constitute Golden Dome.
Trump said Alaska would be a big part of the program, while Florida, Georgia and Indiana would also benefit.
