Dan Quayle on Defense

Neglect is leading to a “hollow military”

Under the Clinton-Gore Administration, our military has been neglected, our stature in the world has been diminished, and we have no coherent foreign policy to keep our country secure and prosperous. We must undo the damage. After nearly eight years of budget cuts and neglect, our armed forces are dangerously close to duplicating the “hollow military” of the 1970s. By 2001, it has been calculated that to carry out a military operation the size of Desert Storm would require 90% of the active Army.. Source: www.quayle2000.com/ “Secure America”, 5/19/99 May 19, 1999

Focus on high-tech: SDI and spying

We need to increase investment in our national defense, and plan for unconventional security threats. [We should] discard the outdated ABM Treaty and immediately develop and deploy a national ballistic missile defense system. He wants to enhance our intelligence-gathering capabilities to better protect us from terrorist attack and other unconventional threats. And, he will reestablish the will and credibility to fight the spread of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons of mass destruction. Source: www.quayle2000.com/ “Secure America”, 5/19/99 May 19, 1999

Spend more on advanced weapons R&D

[I fought] the Soviet Union’s ban on conventional cruise missiles under the INF Treaty. Now, America has been able to use cruise missiles for many missions that once required putting pilots, sailors, and soldiers in harm’s way. We should be [spending more on] stealth, sensors, and robotics to develop a whole range of advanced weapons systems. [Advances in] technology come from years of intensive, and usually expensive, R&D - a category that has taken some serious budgetary hits in the last decade. Source: Speech to The Heritage Foundation, , Washington DC Jan 12, 1999

Modify Aegis for missile defense; withdraw from ABM Treaty

It is time for a focused effort to develop and deploy effective missile defenses. A short-term response is already available. We can modify the Navy’s Aegis fleet air defense system to intercept ballistic missiles. The next step is to develop a national missile defense system. Some will object that doing so would violate the ABM Treaty with the old Soviet Union. We should declare the ABM Treaty obsolete and exercise our right to withdraw. Source: Speech to The Heritage Foundation, , Washington DC Jan 12, 1999

Coordinate intelligence agencies to fight terrorism

I’m dismayed at the low level of attention that’s given to the issue of terrorism. The world’s only superpower is a possible target of every nut, every rogue dictator, every group with an ax to grind. The president should be using every tool at his command to get a grip on this problem, and that includes finding new ways to coordinate activities among the NSC, CIA, and DIA. Source: Speech to The Heritage Foundation, , Washington DC Jan 12, 1999

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