To the Point
Missile Defense
After the Cold War, Ronald Reagan's "Star Wars" missile defense seemed doomed for lack of a credible threat. But President Bush says the US remains vulnerable to missiles from "rogue states" which are not part of the international arms control system. Supporters say there's no time to lose, but skeptics aren't certain that it would really reduce the danger. Does missile defense promise a safer world or a new arms race? We evaluate talk, technology and timetables with defense specialists from the Clinton and Reagan administrations, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, and a national security analyst at the Heritage Foundation. Newsmaker: Social Security - Acknowledging that it has become "insecure," President Bush has named a 16-member commission to overhaul the Social Security program. Ron Brownstein, national political reporter for the Los Angeles Times, says the big question now is whether private retirement will become an "add-on" or "carved-out" plan. Reporter's Notebook: Verdict in 1963 Church Bombing Trial - Yesterday, a jury of 4 blacks and 8 whites convicted Thomas Blanton of murdering four black girls in a 1963 Birmingham church bombing. Richard Arrington retired as the city's mayor in 1999 after 20 years in office. Birmingham's first African American mayor talks about open wound that's haunted his city for almost 40 years.
By Warren Olney • • 1 min readAfter the Cold War, Ronald Reagan's "Star Wars" missile defense seemed doomed for lack of a credible threat. But President Bush says the US remains vulnerable to missiles from "rogue states" which are not part of the international arms control system. Supporters say there's no time to lose, but skeptics aren't certain that it would really reduce the danger. Does missile defense promise a safer world or a new arms race? We evaluate talk, technology and timetables with defense specialists from the Clinton and Reagan administrations, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, and a national security analyst at the Heritage Foundation.
Social Security - Acknowledging that it has become "insecure," President Bush has named a 16-member commission to overhaul the Social Security program. Ron Brownstein, national political reporter for the
Los Angeles Times, says the big question now is whether private retirement will become an "add-on" or "carved-out" plan.
Verdict in 1963 Church Bombing Trial - Yesterday, a jury of 4 blacks and 8 whites convicted Thomas Blanton of murdering four black girls in a 1963 Birmingham church bombing. Richard Arrington retired as the city's mayor in 1999 after 20 years in office. Birmingham's first African American mayor talks about open wound that's haunted his city for almost 40 years.