National Defense: A Political Perspective Essay -- essays research pap

National Defense: A Political Perspective   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The defense of our nation has always been a strong issue throughout America’s political history. Although our nation has not existed a long period of time, our country has had to take up arms to make the world safe for democracy many times. Liberals and conservatives are also constantly up in arms over the issue of the best way to defend the country.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  One of the foremost issues in the ongoing debate is that of a Ballistic Missile Defense program. The idea was first pitched during the tense period of the Cold War. Colin Powell, a prominent conservative, saw Missile Defense â€Å"at the time the time not as a Utopian dream but as a useful way of throwing a scare into the war planners of the Soviet Union†(Keller, 1). Typically, Republicans as far back as Ronald Reagan have embraced the idea of a â€Å"Shield† against the hostile intentions of any nation with ballistic missiles, but many remain skeptical of a technological dependence that such a system would incur. George W. Bush believes in a limited Missile Defense program, but in order to institute advanced testing of the technology, a way around the A.B.M. treaty would have to be found. This treaty was made in order to reduce the nuclear arsenal of both Russia and the United States. Conservatives generally embrace the program as a viable solution to one of the nation’s top priority’s in homeland defense.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  ...