Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Sen. Mark Begich, Alaska Democrat, Missile-Defense Backer   [Jim Geraghty]

You don't see Democratic Senators addressing audiences at the Heritage Foundation that often, but today Sen. Mark Begich, (D., Alaska), spoke at the organization about "Alaska's Strategic Role in the Defense of the United States and the Vital Role of Missile Defense."

"North Korea is in the business of producing for their own purposes and also for cold hard cash," Begich said. "The more they can show off their stuff, the more they have they opportunity to sell to whoever . . . We have not had enough discussion about that, because we're now consumed by domestic affairs — health care, climate change, appropriations. But that's the long-term threat."

"You hear some people who will say, North Korea will never launch these missiles at the United States. I don't necessarily buy that, I come from Alaska, and we look at these issues a little differently - we're a little more sensitive about that. But someone else is going to buy those goods because North Korea needs hard cash, and then we're going ot have to deal with it."

On the recent U.S. Naval tracking of a North Korean ship believed to be carrying missile parts or other sensitive materials, Begich scoffed at the utility of current rules that only permit inspections of North Korean ships if the crew grants permission.

"Maybe I'm missing something, but I don't think they're going to give us permission," Begich said. "Maybe I'm reading something different about North Korea than everyone else, but I just don't see that happening . . . I'm a little more aggressive about these things. If we suspect there's a ship with a product that is a concern to us, we need a way to inspect. Otherwise, we're just playing a shell game and we're never going to look under the shell."

07/22 03:05 PMShare