Thad Cochran: “By this vote, the Senate has done what has never been done before. It has passed legislation making it the policy of the…”

“By this vote, the Senate has done what has never been done before. It has passed legislation making it the policy of the United States to deploy a national missile defense system capable against rogue-state threats as soon as the technology to do so is ready. By this action, the Senate has sent an unmistakable message around the world: To rogue states, that America will marshal its technological resources and refuse to be vulnerable to their ballistic missile threats of coercion; To our allies, that the United States will continue to be a reliable alliance partner; To other nations, that no country will have any form of veto over America protecting its security interests; To those working on the development of a national missile defense, that their work is valued and the system will be deployed just as soon as it is ready to protect America; And most of all, to the American people, who will no longer have cause to wonder if their Government intends to fulfill its most fundamental responsibility.”