The Harris Poll indicates that the percentage of Americans placing “a great deal of confidence” in the US military over the past six years has dropped from a high in 2002 of 71 percent to 47 percent in 2006, but it still outshines confidence in the White House. In the same period, the “great deal of confidence” factor for the White House is half what it was in 2002, dropping from 50 percent to 25 percent. The military consistently has topped the Harris Poll confidence index since 1992.
The Air Force’s Hypersonic Attack Cruise Missile is behind schedule and may significantly overrun its expected cost, which could partially explain why the service is reviving the hypersonic AGM-183 Air-Launched Rapid-Response Weapon.