Gen. Mike Guetlein will be the inaugural Golden Dome for America Direct Reporting Program Manager as President Donald Trump looks to quickly set up a multi-layered missile defense system that protects Americans from a range of foreign threats.
The Senate confirmed Guetlein last week. Guetlein will report directly to Deputy Secretary of Defense Steve Feinberg. Guetlein will be responsible for developing the Golden Dome “portfolio of capabilities,” according to the Defense Department.
“Golden Dome is President Trump’s bold vision to build a layered defense of the Homeland to provide for the common defense of the American People against ballistic, hypersonic, advanced cruise missiles, and other next-generation aerial attacks from near-peer and rogue nations,” according to the Defense Department.
Earlier this year, Trump outlined plans for a $175 billion missile defense shield. The system Trump envisions would protect the U.S. and Canada using multiple layers of defense against diverse potential attacks, making it much more complex than previous proposals. The Golden Dome would also include space-based sensors and interceptors that the president said would be able to intercept missiles “even if they are launched from other sides of the world and even if they are launched from space.”
The president said the missile defense system would be operational before he leaves office in 2029. Trump’s plan is loosely modeled after Israel’s Iron Dome – but on a much larger scale. Israel’s Iron Dome defends a nation the size of New Jersey against short-range missiles built in underground tunnels. Trump’s system would protect a much larger area – North America – against more challenging threats, including intercontinental ballistic missiles and hypersonic weapons.
The Office of Golden Dome for America “will establish partnerships with industry, academia, national labs, and other government agencies to develop an objective architecture and to rapidly develop and field defensive capabilities,” according to the Defense Department.
The Pentagon said the government plans to “socialize this objective architecture as it is developed within the next 60 days.”
“Golden Dome for America requires a whole-of-nation response to deter and, if necessary, to defeat attacks against the United States,” the Pentagon said. “We have the technological foundation, national talent, and decisive leadership to advance our nation’s defenses.”
