When Carter killed the B-1 Bomber
Ike defined the military industrial complex — the 39th president won at least one battle against it
Analysis | Military Industrial Complex
Dr. Gordon Adams
Jan 09, 2025
It was 1977. There we stood, peace movement lobbyists on one side of the door into the House of Representatives, uniformed Air Force lobbyists on the other side of the door. Both of us were urging members of Congress walking through the door to vote to end production of the B-1 bomber. “What,” you say, “that can’t be right.”
This vote was part of the legacy of Jimmy Carter. Presidents have frequently seized on a military system to demonstrate their commitment to national security. JFK found a missile gap and committed to close this fictional disparity with the Soviet Union. Ronald Reagan gave us Star Wars, a mythical promise to put a shield over the United States. During the campaign, Bill Clinton went out of his way to endorse the still-troubled V-22 Osprey helicopter for the Marines and a new submarine for the Navy.
Jimmy Carter did the opposite. He is one of the rare Presidents to commit to end a military hardware program, usually a politically deadly thing to do. As I argued more than 40 years ago in The Iron Triangle: The Politics of Defense Contracting,and as I saw up close as the White House’s senior budget official for national security under Bill Clinton, military hardware programs are decidedly hard things to kill.
https://responsiblestatecraft.org/carter-military/
