STAR WARS ON STEROIDS: Invoking former President Ronald Reagan’s vision of a system of space-based lasers to shoot down incoming missiles, dubbed “Star Wars” by critics at the time, President Donald Trump enthused over the Pentagon’s initial concept to make his Golden Dome for America dream a reality in an Oval office presentation Tuesday.
“We will truly be completing the job that President Reagan started 40 years ago, forever ending the missile threat to the American homeland,” Trump said, claiming that technological advances in recent decades now make the concept of an impenetrable missile shield covering the entire United States possible. “The success rate is very close to 100%, which is incredible when you think of it. You’re shooting bullets out of the air.”
“This design for the Golden Dome will integrate with our existing defense capabilities and should be fully operational before the end of my term. So we’ll have it done in about three years,” Trump said, describing the concept as a “state-of-the-art system that will deploy next-generation technologies across the land, sea, and space, including space-based sensors and interceptors.”
“Once fully constructed, the Golden Dome will be capable of intercepting missiles even if they are launched from other sides of the world and even if they are launched from space,” he said. “It’s a pretty evil world out there. So this is something that goes a long way toward the survival of this great country.”
TRUMP NAMES SPACE FORCE GENERAL TO LEAD GOLDEN DOME EFFORT
TRUMP: ‘SUPER TECHNOLOGY, NOBODY ELSE HAS IT’: Despite the formidable technical and budgetary challenges of fielding such a complex system in just three years, Trump insisted it could be done, at a price tag of roughly about $175 billion, with a $25 billion down payment included in this year’s reconciliation budget, which is bottled up in Congress at the moment.
A recent Congressional Budget Office estimate put the total cost of deploying and operating a constellation of space-based interceptors for 20 years at anywhere from a low of $161 billion to a high of $831 billion.
“The Golden Dome for America is a game changer,” Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said, calling the project “a generational investment in the security of America,” and promising to meet the president’s ambitious timeline. “We’re going to get to work on it … [It’s] something you’ve charged us with doing, and we’ll keep going until it is complete, sir.”
Trump insisted the system would be well worth the money. “We will have the best system ever built,” Trump said, arguing that the Golden Dome would be a vast improvement over Israel’s Iron Dome, which inspired it. “We helped Israel with theirs, and it was very successful. And now we have technology that’s even far advanced from that … hypersonic missiles, ballistic missiles, and advanced cruise missiles, all of them will be knocked out of the air.”
“We’re the only ones that have this, we call it super technology,” he said. “Nobody else has it and nobody else has nearly really near what we have.”
GUETLEIN: ‘A BOLD AND AGGRESSIVE APPROACH’: To oversee the effort, Trump tapped Gen. Michael Guetlein, the vice chief of space operations at the Space Force, who, in congressional testimony earlier this year, said the project is akin to the 1940s effort to develop the atomic bomb.
“The only time that I can think of in the history of the United States where we have gone after something this complex was the Manhattan Project,” Guetlein told the Senate Armed Services Committee on March 12 while insisting that it is doable. “It’s not complex because the technology’s going to be hard. It’s complex because of the number of organizations and the number of agencies that need to be involved.”
In the Oval Office, Guetlein called Golden Dome “a bold and aggressive approach” as “we double down on protection of the homeland” while describing the threat against the U.S. by Russia and China as growing by the day.
“While we have been focused on keeping the peace overseas, our adversaries have been quickly modernizing their nuclear forces,” he said. “Our adversaries have become very capable and very intent on holding the homeland at risk … Building out ballistic missiles capable of hosting multiple warheads, building out hypersonic missiles capable of attacking the United States within an hour and traveling at 6,000 miles an hour. Building cruise missiles that can navigate around our radar and our defenses, building submarines that can sneak up on our shores, and worse yet, building space weapons.”
SPACE FORCE LOSING SIZABLE PERCENTAGE OF CIVILIAN WORKFORCE DUE TO JOB CUTS
Good Wednesday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Christopher Tremoglie. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list. And be sure to follow me on Threads and/or on X @jamiejmcintyre.
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HAPPENING TODAY: As of this writing, the House Rules Committee is still wrangling over President Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” after working through the night and resolving one hang-up — a dispute over the state and local tax deduction cap, known as SALT.
Lawmakers pulled an all-nighter to try to meet House Speaker Mike Johnson’s timeline to pass the 1,116-page bill by Memorial Day. Along with extending President Trump’s 2017 tax breaks and $5 billion to beef up funding for border enforcement, the spending measure provides nearly $150 billion for defense, including $25 billion for Trump’s “Golden Dome,” $21 billion to restock the nation’s ammunition arsenal, $34 billion for shipbuilding.
Democrats who argue the bill would explode the deficit and gut Medicaid insurance for poor people oppose the measure, but its fate rests on a few Republican holdouts. “This is a 1,000-page bill, for God’s sake. A thousand-plus pages, and you want to shove it through in the dead of night, because Trump said close your eyes and vote for it,” said Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA) this morning.
President Trump made a trip to Capitol Hill yesterday to meet with Republicans to push for passage and described his closed-door session as “a meeting of love.”
“I think we’re in good shape,” he said. “There is great unity in that room. And it’s the biggest tax cut in American history, and if it doesn’t pass, everybody’s going to get a 68% tax increase. I don’t know how you beat that.”
SALT CAUCUS AND GOP LEADERSHIP REACH TENTATIVE DEAL IN WIN FOR TAX BILL
HEGSETH ORDERS AFGHANISTAN ACCOUNTABILITY REVIEW: In a memo issued Tuesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered a “comprehensive review” of the circumstances that resulted in the “chaotic withdrawal of U.S. military and embassy officials from Afghanistan that led to the deaths of 13 U.S. Service members and 170 civilians in a suicide bombing at the Kabul International Airport’s Abbey Gate.”
“The Department of Defense has an obligation, both to the American people and to the warfighters who sacrificed their youth in Afghanistan, to get to the facts,” Hegseth wrote, saying his decision to order a full accounting came after months a preliminary review of the “catastrophic event in our military’s history.”
“I have concluded that we need to conduct a comprehensive review to ensure that accountability for this event is met and that the complete picture is provided to the American people,” Hegseth wrote. “This remains an important step toward regaining faith and trust with the American people and all those who wear the uniform.”
Hegseth adviser Sean Parnell, assistant to the secretary of defense for public affairs, has been directed to convene a “Special Review Panel,” which will “thoroughly examine previous investigations, to include but not limited to, findings of fact, sources, witnesses, and analyze the decision making that led to one of America’s darkest and deadliest international moments.”
“Sean Parnell spent 485 days serving in Afghanistan. Sean was wounded in action along with 85% of his platoon and lost countless friends to the War on Terror. It is fitting that he will lead the effort to reexamine previous Abbey Gate investigations,” Hegseth said in a statement. He also announced that Lt. Col. Stuart Scheller, “a combat-decorated Marine officer who spoke out about the Afghanistan withdrawal,” and Jerry Dunleavy, “an author, journalist, and investigator who helped lead the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s investigation into the Afghanistan withdrawal,” will serve on the special review panel.
“Ironic that I will be investigating who should be held accountable for Afghanistan,” Scheller, who was court-martialed after posting videos while in uniform in which he criticized senior leaders, posted on X, adding, “Thank you Pete Hegseth for your leadership.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
THE RUNDOWN:
Washington Examiner: Trump names Space Force general to lead Golden Dome effort
Washington Examiner: Space Force losing sizable percentage of civilian workforce due to job cuts
Washington Examiner: Rubio: Syrian transitional government could collapse without US engagement
Washington Examiner: Rubio and Van Hollen lock horns during testy Senate hearing over USAID, deportations
Washington Examiner: Rubio says US allowed to ‘pick and choose’ who gets refugee status, including Afrikaners
Washington Examiner: Khamenei doubts US nuclear talks will succeed as enrichment question persists
Washington Examiner: Rand Paul exposes how Biden administration had federal air marshals follow Tulsi Gabbard on flights
Washington Examiner: Noem denies plans to put immigrants through reality TV show
Washington Examiner: US and Canada linked up in fight to stop drug smuggling at border
Washington Examiner: Seven in 10 voters think US-Canada border needs more security: Poll
Washington Examiner: Judge rules US must retain custody of migrants sent to South Sudan after two men deported there
Washington Examiner: SALT Caucus and GOP leadership reach tentative deal in win for tax bill
Washington Examiner: Strikes on Gaza kill at least 60 people, local officials say, as criticism against Israel mounts
Washington Examiner: Opinion: Trump has a chance to stop Iran
Air & Space Forces Magazine: USAF Has Started Planning for Qatari 747 to Enter Presidential Service as Air Force One
New York Times: The Inside Story of Trump’s Search for a New Air Force One
Wall Street Journal: Venezuela Frees US Air Force Veteran in Overture to Trump
Militarycom: Request for 20,000 Guardsmen to Help with Immigration Crackdown Under Review, Guard Chief Says
New York Times: When the U.S. and Israel Bomb the Houthis, Civilians Pay the Highest Price
Aviation Week: US Air Force Proposes Self-Defense Upgrade For B-1B Bomber Fleet
AP: Racist Memes Shared by Navy SEALs Prompt Investigation, Disciplinary Actions
Militarycom: Terrorists Granted Paid Accounts, Blue Checks on X: Report
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Air Force Reserve Pilots Short $26 Million for Flying Hours, Putting ‘Proficiency at Risk’
Military.com: ICE Agents Will Be Posted at Gates of 3 Marine Corps Bases as Part of Pilot Program
The War Zone: Why the Nuclear Gravity Bomb Has Gotten a Reboot
Defense One: US Army Medics Prepare for War with China
THE CALENDAR:
WEDNESDAY | MAY 21
2:30 p.m. 124 Dirksen — Senate Appropriations Energy and Water Development Subcommittee hearing: “A Review of the President’s FY2026 Budget Request for the Department of Energy,” with testimony from Energy Secretary Chris Wright http://appropriations.senate.gov
2:30 p.m. 222 Russell — Senate Armed Services Cybersecurity Subcommittee hearing: “Defense of the Department of Defense Information Network,” with testimony from Army Lt. Gen. Paul Stanton, director, Defense Information Systems Agency and commander, Department of Defense Information Network’s Joint Force Headquarters http://www.armed-services.senate.gov
2:30 p.m. 232-A Russell — Senate Armed Services Seapower Subcommittee hearing: “Navy unmanned systems,” with testimony from Bryan Clark, senior fellow and director, Center for Defense Concepts and Technology; and retired Navy Rear Adm. Robert Girrier, former deputy commander, Pacific Fleet and former director of operations for the U.S. Pacific Command http://www.armed-services.senate.gov
6 p.m. 90 Stadium Dr., College Park, Maryland — University of Maryland 2025 commencement ceremonies with Kermit the Frog delivering the commencement address https://commencement.umd.edu/school-college-ceremonies
THURSDAY | MAY 22
8:30 a.m. 151 St. George Blvd., Oxon Hill, Maryland — Defense Strategies Institute Assured Logistics Summit, with Lt. Col. Boyd Miller, J-4 principal director, Joint Chiefs of Staff, https://logistics.dsigroup.org/
9:30 a.m. 1201 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — Hudson Institute conference: “U.S.-China Rivalry in the Middle East,” with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) https://www.hudson.org/events/us-china-rivalry-middle-east-conference
10 a.m. 1779 Massachusetts Ave. NW — Carnegie Endowment for International Peace discussion: “Has the World Arrived in a new Nuclear Age?” with Alex Bell, president and CEO, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists; Ankit Panda, CEIP senior fellow; Corey Hinderstein, CEIP vice president for studies; and David Hoffman, Washington Post contributing editor https://carnegieendowment.org/events/2025/05/
10 a.m. — Arab Center virtual discussion: “Syria’s Transitional Government: Challenges, Policies, and Prospects,” with Syrian Minister of Communication and Information Technology Abdulsalam Haykal; Syrian Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Hind Kabawat; and Syrian Minister of Information Hamza al-Mustafa https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register
5:30 p.m. 1957 E St. NW — Women’s Foreign Policy Group discussion: “China Connections: Past, President, and Future of U.S.-China Policy,” with Mercy Kuo, senior contributing author at The Diplomat; Yun Sun, senior fellow and co-director, Stimson Center’s East Asia Program; and Wenchi Yu, non-resident research fellow at Harvard University and international affairs commentator at TVBS News https://www.wfpg.org/index.php?
FRIDAY | MAY 23
9 a.m. 550 Taylor Ave., Annapolis, Maryland — U.S. Naval Academy 2025 graduation and commissioning ceremony at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, with Vice President J.D. Vance https://www.usna.edu/CommissioningWeek/schedule.php10 a.m. — National Institute for Deterrence Studies virtual seminar: “Strategic Shifts: Russia’s Tactical and Expanding Theater Nuclear Competitive Advantage,” with Philip Karber, president of the Potomac Foundation https://thinkdeterrence.com/events/strategic-shifts
