Missile Defense Monitor: Kirk's Proposed Missile Defense Amendment

Staying on the theme of Republicans who want to use the Russian invasion of Georgia to bolster support for the need for a third missile defense site in Europe, Congressman Mark Kirk (R-IL) intends to “offer an amendment to the Defense Appropriations bill to fully restore funding cuts to the Missile Defense Agency's budget for the deployment of U.S. Ballistic Missile Defenses to Poland and the Czech Republic.” His (flawed) reasoning?

"As Russian ballistic missiles rain down on Georgia, we should honor our commitment to allies in Poland and the Czech Republic that asked for our help," said Kirk, a member of the Appropriations Committee and a U.S. Navy intelligence officer.

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"To maintain regional stability and protect our NATO allies, Congress should honor this request from our allies who are concerned about Russia’s invasion of Georgia."

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"In May, the United States had not reached an official agreement with either Poland or the Czech Republic on the deployment of our missile defenses," Kirk noted. "Today, the Polish and Czech requests are formal after Russian missiles hit targets in Georgia. Congress should support the requests of the Polish and Czech people to have these defenses."

Expect to see most Republicans and some conservative Democrats in both the House and Senate declare their support for such amendments as they mark up and debate their respective versions of the FY 09 defense appropriations bill next month.