Kathleen Bailey

In the following viewpoint, Kathleen Bailey criticizes proposals to remove U.S. nuclear missiles from alert status. According to Bailey, de-alerting nuclear weapons—that is, lengthening the time needed to launch a missile—would threaten U.S. security. In order to effectively deter a nuclear attack, she claims, the United States must retain an arsenal that is able to be fired immediately. Bailey is a senior fellow at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the former assistant director for proliferation at the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to Bailey, why are U.S. nuclear missiles on alert"

2. In the author’s view, why would de-alerting nuclear weapons be destabilizing"

3. What three reasons does Bailey provide for...