War II-era battleships of theIowaclass to serve as ar-
mored cruise-missile platforms.
The Pentagon also spent more money on nuclear
forces in the 1980’s, with all service branches acquir-
ing new nuclear weapons. The Air Force, in addition
to the new B-1 and upgraded B-52 bombers, re-
placed old Titan and Minuteman intercontinental
ballistic missiles (ICBMs) with the new MX missile,
also known as the “Peacemaker.” The Air Force
also fielded cruise missiles armed with nuclear war-
heads. The Navy introduced the Trident submarine-
launched ballistic missile (SLBM) on itsOhio-class
submarines, vastly increasing the number of nuclear
warheads deployed at sea. The Army deployed the
new short-range Pershing II missile at bases in Eu-
rope, despite vocal opposition from local antinu-
clear groups. The most controversial nuclear spend-
ing, however, was on the Pentagon’s efforts to create
a space-based defense system against Soviet nuclear
attack. Officially called the Strategic Defense Initia-
tive (SDI), but more commonly referred to as “Star
Wars” in the popular press, this proposed high-tech
system would feature ground- and space-based de-
fenses capable of shooting down incoming Soviet
nuclear weapons. The project ceased, however, with
the end of the Cold War.
Impact The impact of military spending in the
1980’s is difficult to assess. Some believed that spend-
ing was excessive and that the resulting military
buildup threatened to turn the Cold War hot. Oth-
ers believed, however, that the military challenge to
the Soviets caused the Soviet Union to go bankrupt
in its attempt to match American military spending,
thus speeding the end of Soviet communism. Re-
gardless of either effect, military spending in the
1980’s certainly corrected the equipment and man-
power deficiencies of the American military after
Vietnam, as well as contributing to the massive bud-
get deficits of the 1980’s. The reinvigoration and re-
equipping of the military also paid dividends at the
end of the decade, when Iraq invaded Kuwait. Fully
prepared after a decade of restructuring, the Ameri-
can military easily defeated Iraq’s army in the Gulf
War of 1991.
Further Reading
Conway, Hugh.Defense Economic Issues. Washington,
D.C.: National Defense University, 1990. Exam-
ines 1980’s defense spending in the context of
post-Cold War changes to the U.S. military.
Krc, Miroslav.Militar y Expenditures During and After
the Cold War. Prague: Institute of International
Relations, 2000. Comparative study of defense
spending on both sides of the Iron Curtain dur-
ing the Cold War, with several chapters on spend-
ing in the 1980’s.
Mintz, Alex.Political Economy of Militar y Spending in
the United States. New York: Routledge, 1992. Study
of the political decisions governing which weap-
ons are procured and how much to spend on
them.
Weinberger, Caspar W.Fighting for Peace: Seven Criti-
cal Years in the Pentagon. New York: Warner, 1990.
As secretary of defense for President Reagan,
Weinberger oversaw the massive defense spend-
ing of the 1980’s.
Steven J. RamoldSee also Bush, George H. W.; Business and the
economy in the United States; Cold War; Foreign
policy of the United States; Goldwater-Nichols Act of
1986; Grenada invasion; Intermediate-Range Nu-
clear Forces (INF) Treaty; Panama invasion; Rea-
gan, Ronald; Reagan Doctrine; Stealth fighter; Stra-
tegic Defense Initiative (SDI); Weinberger, Caspar.Miller, Sue
Identification American author
Born November 29, 1943
Through her fiction, Miller explored concerns and attitudes
prevalent in the 1980’s. Her first novel and major work of
this decade,The Good Mother, reflected a societal recog-
nition that women could now shape their own lives as they
moved beyond previously prescribed gender roles and that
all people could experience, as a result of self-understand-
ing, more control over their lives.
Sue Miller’s fiction reflects her own heritage, as well
as concerns of the broader culture in which she
wrote. Her father was an ordained minister and
taught church history, and both of her grandfathers
were Protestant clergymen. Her work often evinces a
preoccupation with the moral implications of indi-
vidual decisions, a concern that shapes the plot of
The Good Mother(1986). Miller has attributed this
concern to her family background. WritingThe Good
Motherwhen she was a divorced, single mother,
Miller was aware of the difficulties and promises of650 Miller, Sue The Eighties in America