The authors assess alternatives for a next-generation intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) across a broad set of potential characteristics and situations. They use the current Minuteman III as a baseline to develop a framework to characterize alternative classes of ICBMs, assess the survivability and effectiveness of possible alternatives, and weigh those alternatives against their cost.

Focusing especially on the history of the MX program, this book examines the process of U.S. weapons procurement decision making. The authors demonstrate that strategic and general political factors (as opposed to bureaucratic concerns) play a far more decisive role in the decision-making process than is indicated in previous studies of weapons procurement. They also point to the significant contributions of congressional and public debate in influencing U.S. policy concerning weapons procurement. The authors conclude that the pattern of decision making with regard to the MX reflects a change that began in the 1970s and thus will be significant in explaining procurement policy in the decade ahead.