WASHINGTON — The Senate confirmed Gen. Michael Guetlein, a former program executive at the Missile Defense Agency in Huntsville, to lead the Golden Dome project.
The Senate’s unanimous confirmation vote last Thursday is another step toward making President Donald Trump’s Golden Dome, a multi-layered defense shield, a reality. Trump estimates the massive project will cost around $175 billion. The president also announced in May he wanted it completed by the end of his term in 2029.
U.S. Rep. Dale Strong, R-Huntsville, said Guetlein’s ties to Redstone Arsenal will be important for the area’s future involvement with the initiative.
“Everybody in our city is excited,” Strong told Alabama Daily News Monday. “We’re talking about somebody that truly knows the Rocket City. He lived there for a period during his service, and I think he’s the true person for this to push this Golden Dome forward.”
Trump announced Guetlein would oversee the Golden Dome operations during a press conference in May.
“He has an unmatched background in missile warning technology and defense procurement,” Trump said in May. “General Guetlein also knows that we need to move fast. No one is more qualified for his job and everybody, this was a universal acceptance of General Guetlein.”
Before his appointment, Guetlein was the vice chief of space operations in the U.S. Space Force. He served as program executive for programs and integration at the Missile Defense Agency at Redstone Arsenal from 2017 to 2019.
The Golden Dome project, created by Trump through an executive order signed in January, will upgrade and expand upon the United States’ missile defense shield to combat ballistic, hypersonic, and cruise missiles capable of striking the homeland. The Golden Dome will build upon current space-based interceptors and sensors.
The House Appropriations Department of Defense Act allocates $13 billion for missile defense and space programs to support the Golden Dome. The bill passed the House by a vote of 221-209, the same day the Golden Dome czar was confirmed last week. Trump’s big bill also included funding for the missile defense shield.
“You’re looking at $25 billion that has been made available through the reconciliation process, and $13 billion through the defense (appropriations bill),” Strong told ADN.
“This project is moving forward, and I can promise you, the president isn’t playing games. He understands how critical it is that we be able to do the same thing that Israel is doing in their country, but we’ve got to be able to do it here in America.”
Strong also created the Golden Dome Caucus alongside co-chair Rep. Jeff Crank, R-CO, who represents the district where Space Command headquarters is currently located. The caucus hopes to further Congress’ role in the creation of the initiative.
Trump and Republicans have touted the Golden Dome initiative as an important step toward better protecting the homeland and boosting national security. However, some experts have said there are numerous challenges ahead for the project, including technical and budgetary constraints as well as the ambitious timeline.
Kari Bingen, director of the Aerospace Security Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said in June that there will be engineering and integration challenges as the Defense Department tackles the project.
“We need to see the details of the architecture,” Bingen said during a Golden Dome event in June. “There needs to be a strategy. We need to have a better understanding of what’s going to be prioritized over what time period and at what cost.”
U.S. Sens. Katie Britt and Tommy Tuberville are also supporting the GOLDEN DOME Act to authorize additional funding for the defense system.