• Economy
  • Editor’s Pick
Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Investing
  • Stock
Editor's Pick

Trump unveils ‘Golden Dome’ missile shield, blindsides key senators

by May 21, 2025
written by May 21, 2025

Before President Donald Trump’s dramatic reveal of the ‘Golden Dome’ missile defense project on Tuesday, the proposal wasn’t even on the radar of many lawmakers on Capitol Hill.

Several senators told Fox News Digital they had received no briefing on the initiative’s costs – and some hadn’t heard of it at all.

‘I don’t support blank checks. I haven’t seen the cost figures,’ Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., told Fox News Digital. 

Two senior members of the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee, one Republican and one Democrat, asked, ‘what’s Golden Dome?’ in response to questions about the project Trump commissioned in January. 

Trump’s sweeping plan – pitched as an American version of Israel’s Iron Dome – carries an ambitious price tag and timeline. He’s floated a $125 billion estimated cost and says it could be built in three years, by the end of his term. A government funding package moving through Congress, dubbed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, includes $25 billion to jumpstart the project.

But defense experts and even some Republican allies anticipate the cost to be much higher. 

‘This is not going to be a $25 billion or $35 billion project. It will likely cost in the trillions if and when Golden Dome is completed,’ said Sen. Tim Sheehy, R-Mont., who announced plans to form a Golden Dome Caucus during a recent Washington Times defense industry event earlier this month. 

Sheehy warned that simply scaling up Israel’s Iron Dome to protect the U.S. is ‘a fundamentally different technological proposition.’

‘The challenges don’t scale linearly with the size of Israel, which is the size of New Jersey,’ he added.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has estimated the project could cost around $500 billion – though some believe even that figure is likely too low.

CBO estimated that the space-based interceptors portion of the dome could cost at least $161 billion but up to $542 billion. But it didn’t account for any ground-based interceptors in that cost. 

‘I’ve been 34 years in this business, and I’ve never seen an early estimate that was too high,’ said Space Force chief of space operations Gen. Chance Saltzman. ‘We don’t always understand the full level of complexity until you’re actually in execution, doing the detailed planning.’

Some Republican lawmakers suggest the potential benefits outweigh the massive spending required.

‘It might very well prevent a war,’ Sen. Mike Rounds, R-N.D., said. ‘When we talk about spending billions on defense, that is small compared to one single major war – not only in trillions of dollars, but in bloodshed.’

Once a missile is launched toward the U.S. homeland, the Golden Dome system aims to detect it, and orbital systems would aim to hit the missile during its ‘boost’ phase, either with a laser or a kinetic interceptor. Otherwise, ground-based systems could deploy to knock it off its path.  

Others noted competing defense priorities.

‘That’s gonna be a long, drawn-out process, and it’s gonna cost a lot of money,’ said Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala. ‘Right now, we’re redoing our missile silos… we’re transitioning to different types of warfare. If we’re gonna do [Golden Dome], we do it the right way.’

Supporters of the plan argue that technological advances have dramatically lowered the cost of missile defense, enough to potentially flip decades-old strategic assumptions.

Chuck DeVore, a defense expert at the Texas Public Policy Foundation and former Reagan administration official, said the old logic – that it’s always cheaper to build offensive missiles than defenses – may no longer apply.

‘That calculation is changing now,’ DeVore said. ‘With low-cost orbit launches and inexpensive electronics, it may actually be less expensive to defend against nuclear missiles than to build them. If that’s the case, we’re at a truly revolutionary inflection point.’

DeVore also warned that traditionalists in the defense establishment may push back.

‘You’re going to see people defending the status quo,’ he said. ‘They’ll say we need that money for more conventional defense – more divisions, more jet fighters, maybe another aircraft carrier.’

Still, DeVore argued that a homeland missile defense system is overdue.

‘The ability to truly defend the homeland and save American lives is better than mutual assured destruction – especially in an age of nuclear proliferation where we can’t always be sure where the threat is coming from.’

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., agreed on the project’s importance, even as he said he hadn’t been briefed on the cost and needs of the project. 

‘I think it’s the most important thing we could do to keep our homeland safe.’

This post appeared first on FOX NEWS
0 comment
0
FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail

previous post
Biden’s senility scandal leads top Republican to demand DOJ probe into ‘representations’ to public
next post
A man once sued by the SEC wins Trump crypto contest to have dinner with the president

related articles

Iran still wants a nuclear weapon despite ‘serious...

July 6, 2025

Democrats project doom and gloom, not celebration, with...

July 5, 2025

Xi Jinping’s surprise no-show at BRICS Summit fuels...

July 5, 2025

Iran regime escalates repression toward ‘North Korea-style model...

July 4, 2025

This July 4th, a family waits: American hostage’s...

July 4, 2025

President Trump to honor Iran strike flight team...

July 4, 2025

North Korea lashes out after Trump DOJ exposes...

July 4, 2025

Saudi defense minister secretly meets with Trump to...

July 4, 2025

Trump administration swarms SCOTUS with emergency requests and...

July 4, 2025

Trump administration torpedoes SCOTUS with emergency requests and...

July 3, 2025
Enter Your Information Below To Receive Free Trading Ideas, Latest News, And Articles.


Your information is secure and your privacy is protected. By opting in you agree to receive emails from us. Remember that you can opt-out any time, we hate spam too!

Latest News

  • It’s amazing what we’re learning from how Trump is balancing chaos and change

    February 4, 2025
  • Black Caucus chair accuses Trump of ‘purge’ of ‘minority’ federal workers

    January 31, 2025
  • House committee demands interviews with FEMA employees about order to avoid Trump supporters’ houses

    November 18, 2024
  • Tillis’ retirement announcement draws reactions from Trump critic Jeff Flake, Bernie Sanders: ‘A cult’

    June 29, 2025
  • Kash Patel’s confirmation as Trump FBI pick ‘will haunt you,’ Senate Dems warn GOP ahead of vote

    February 20, 2025

Popular Posts

  • 1

    Secret Service admits leaning on ‘state and local partners’ after claim it ignored Trump team’s past requests

    July 21, 2024
  • 2

    Elon and Vivek should tackle US funding for this boondoogle organization and score a multimillion dollar win

    December 4, 2024
  • 3

    Five more House Democrats call on Biden to drop out, third US senator

    July 19, 2024
  • 4

    Forex Profit Calculator: Maximize Your Trading Potential

    July 10, 2024
  • 5

    Biden calls to ‘lower the temperature’ then bashes Trump in NAACP speech

    July 17, 2024

Categories

  • Economy (829)
  • Editor's Pick (5,252)
  • Investing (634)
  • Stock (832)

Latest Posts

  • The Hitchhiker’s Guide to failing to elect a House speaker quickly

    December 26, 2024
  • Judges blocking Trump’s executive orders are acting ‘erroneously,’ White House says

    March 19, 2025
  • Tesla reports 336,000 vehicle deliveries in first quarter, 13% drop from a year ago

    April 2, 2025

Recent Posts

  • Biden-Harris administration failed to recoup $200B in fraudulent COVID loans, House committee says

    November 1, 2024
  • Pedophiles could see death penalty under new House GOP bill: ‘Taken off the streets permanently’

    January 14, 2025
  • HHS downsizing begins amid RFK Jr. ‘Make America Healthy Again’ push: ‘Win-win for taxpayers’

    April 1, 2025

Editor’s Pick

  • S&P 500 climbed 0.3%, and Nasdaq-100 futures jumped 0.7%

    December 4, 2024
  • EURGBP and EURCHF: EURGBP is recovering successfully

    September 5, 2024
  • Jimmy Carter nears the top of America’s ‘Most Admired Man’ list, according to Gallup

    December 30, 2024
  • About us
  • Contacts
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions

Disclaimer: moneyrisetoday.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.

Copyright © 2025 moneyrisetoday.com | All Rights Reserved

Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Economy
  • Editor’s Pick
Money Rise Today – Investing and Stock News
  • Investing
  • Stock