The Nation - News from Feb. 15, 1989

The Bush Administration, facing a bruising internal battle over the future of the U.S. land-based missile force, announced that it will delay a decision on whether to proceed with plans to base MX missiles in garrisons during peacetime and send them out on trains to roam the nation’s rail lines during superpower crises. “We are reviewing the entire strategic posture of the country, and it is logical and necessary that we postpone this major decision until the review is complete,” White House Press Secretary Marlin Fitzwater said. The Administration faces a congressionally imposed deadline to report on how it would spend $350 million set aside for modernization of the land-based missile force this fiscal year. The report was supposed to reach Capitol Hill today, but Pentagon sources said that it probably will not be completed before mid-April. Lawmakers lauded the White House decision to delay the report until the Administration has reviewed the alternatives to the rail-garrison basing for MX missiles.