Gravity's Rainbow

If Bush did it, it must be wrong (unless it involves bailing out investment banks) US To Shelve Nuclear Missile Shield

The White House will shelve Bush administration plans to build a missile-defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic, according to people familiar with the matter, a move likely to cheer Moscow and roil the security debate in Europe.

The U.S. will base its decision on a determination that Iran's long-range missile program has not progressed as rapidly as previously estimated, reducing the threat to the continental U.S. and major European capitals, according to current and former U.S. officials.

Do you feel any comfort in knowing that "the US" has concluded Iran's long-range missile program hasn't progressed as fast as the Bush people once believed? I'm disturbed that they still think our intelligenceagencies could credibly reach such a conclusion.

The Bush administration proposed the European-based system to counter the perceived threat of Iran developing a nuclear weapon that could be placed atop its increasingly sophisticated missiles. There is widespread disagreement over the progress of Iran's nuclear program toward developing such a weapon, but miniaturizing nuclear weapons for use on long-range missiles is one of the most difficult technological hurdles for an aspiring nuclear nation.

The Bush plan infuriated the Kremlin, which argued the system was a potential threat to its own intercontinental ballistic missiles. U.S. officials repeatedly insisted the location and limited scale of the system -- a radar site in the Czech Republic and 10 interceptor missiles in Poland -- posed no threat to Russian strategic arms.

Oh, no! The Kremlin was infuriated! Time for some Smart Power! Well, how's this for Smart? The announcement that Poland and the Czech Republic sites are being removed is being made ... on the 70th anniversary of the Soviet Union's invasion of Poland ((h/t Powerline: see here for more)! Coincidence? Or Smart Power? You be the judge.

But, to be fair, it's not all doom & gloom:

The Obama administration's assessment concludes that U.S. allies in Europe,
including members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, face a more
immediate threat from Iran's short- and medium-range missiles and will order a
shift towards the development of regional missile defenses for the Continent,
according to people familiar with the matter. Such systems would be far less
controversial.

The Smart Power era: when the US's strategic interests must meet the baseline goal of being "far less controversial"