“Golden Dome” Is Fiscally Irresponsible Fantasy

This letter to the editor, by John Krizek appeared in the Hudson Star Observer on June 5, 2025.

While national defense is vital, the proposed missile defense shield—dubbed the “Golden Dome”—ignores practical and economic realities. 

Israel’s “Iron Dome” system protects a nation smaller than New Jersey (8,469 square miles). Scaling such technology to cover the continental U.S. (3.8 million square miles) would require staggeringly expensive investments in infrastructure, maintenance, and iterative upgrades. 

Meanwhile, Alaska, Hawaii, and U.S. territories would remain exposed and unprotected.

Proponents argue such a system of satellites and space-based weapons would deter aerial attacks; but it would fail to protect against attacks below the dome’s coverage—including domestic drone strikes, cyberattacks, or ground-based incursions.

Even if technically feasible, the system likely would be obsolete by deployment due to rapid advancements in ballistic, hypersonic, and cruise missiles and their delivery methods.

Defense spending should prioritize adaptability over static megaprojects. 

Rather than chasing a “Golden Dome” mirage, Congress must address the $34 trillion national debt—a vulnerability no missile shield can deflect.

The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated that deploying and operating just the space-based interceptors of the “Golden Dome” missile defense system could cost from $161 billion to $542 billion over the next twenty years, while Mr. Trump has low-balled the total system cost estimate at $175 billion. Either cost figure would exacerbate a debt crisis that poses a far greater threat to our country. Foreign nations holding U.S. debt—including China ($800 billion), Japan ($1.1 trillion), and the U.K. ($723 billion)—already wield significant economic leverage. A debt call or coordinated sell-off could trigger an unprecedented US fiscal collapse, mirroring the economic pressures that dissolved the Soviet Union.

Fiscal responsibility, not fear-driven spending, is the cornerstone of lasting security. Simply stated, the “Golden Dome” is Fool’s Gold.