Modernization Mountain: Ash Carter and the Aging Triad

After a series of scandals, incoming Secretary of Defense Ash Carter has some tough choices to make about US nuclear weapons and the future of the so-called “triad” of nuclear delivery system.

Jeffrey and Aaron discuss Carter’s confirmation hearing, Jeffrey’s article in Foreign Policy (The Nuclear Trials of Ashton Carter, Foreign Policy, February 5, 2015), and Janne Nolan’s account of Carter’s role in the Clinton Administration’s 1994 Nuclear Posture Review (see below).

Jeffrey also interviewed Geoff Brumfiel, a science correspondent at National Public Radio, about his reporting on the future of the US ICBM force. Geoff visited the 90th missile wing at F.E. Warren Air Force Base and reported a three-part series for All Things Considered:

• To Stop Cheating, Nuclear Officers Ditch The Grades – July 28, 2014
• Welcome To The Nuclear Command Bunker – July 29, 2014
• Should America Keep Its Aging Nuclear Missiles? – July 30, 2014

Geoff also wrote a pair of very funny blog posts:

• To Find America’s Nuclear Missiles, Try Google Maps – July 31, 2014
• How To Order Pizza From A Nuclear Command Bunker – July 31, 2014

After outgoing Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel received a pair of reviews of the nuclear enterprise, Geoff revisited his reporting for All Things Considered:

• Pentagon Plans To Spend Billions Upgrading Nuclear Program – November 2014

Reading recommendations:

• An Elusive Consensus: Nuclear Weapons and American Security After the Cold War – Janne Nolan (Brookings, 1999)
• On Thermonuclear War – Herman Kahn