What Would Real Homeland Defense Cost?

In my column this week, I argued that the United States Air Force should keep fighters in the air at all times to defend our soil and reduce response time in the event of a 9/11-style emergency. On 9/11, you may recall, not a single fighter jet was in the air–which is why NORAD wasn’t able to intercept any hijacked passenger plane before it struck its target.

Air Force honchos have written to inform me that keeping planes in the air at all times in sufficient quantities to cover the entire mainland United States would cost $1 billion per year. Too expensive, they say.

To which I would like to point out: We spend $2 billion a year just to prop up the government of Egypt.