ICBM Amendment to Defense Bill Passes U.S. House

The U.S. House of Representatives passed an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) Wednsday.

The amendment strikes language from the NDAA that would, in 2021, terminate the requirement for U.S. intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) silos to be kept in at least warm status.

The amendment was offered by U.S. Representatives Steve Daines (R-MT), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), and Doug Lamborn (R-CO).

F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne houses a portion of the nation’s land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles. Lummis in a news release issued the following comments:

“Faced with geopolitical challenges, our nuclear triad is absolutely necessary to reassure uneasy friends and remind emboldened adversaries that America is still standing strong and is still a force to be reckoned with. Terminating the requirement to keep our ICBMs in warm status would weaken our nuclear deterrent and waste the decade long upgrades to the Minuteman III missiles that make them a very cost-efficient component of our defense systems. I am pleased to see the majority of the House agreed and chose to retain the ICBM force so critical to our national security.”