Japan matches China's military spending. South Korea devotes three times as much as North Korea to its military. And with 29 times the gross domestic product and twice the population of its northern neighbor, it could do far more. Yes, America does remain vulnerable to nuclear attack. That's why research and deployment of a missile defense should be a top priority.
Terrorism is an obvious concern, but that's largely the result of misguided intervention abroad.
It's also true that U.S. forces are being stretched, but not in the defense of America. Instead, Clinton is dissipating military strength on frivolous missions, such as attempting to force three antagonistic ethnic groups to live together in a united Bosnia. Washington's threatened intervention in Kosovo, one of a score of civil wars and ethnic conflicts raging around the globe, is another example of unnecessary Wilsonian warmongering. In cases like these, the Clinton administration is risking the lives and wealth of Americans for nothing. Equally foolish are efforts to defend populous and prosperous allies who should have graduated from Washington's defense safety net long ago.