DEFENSE: ARMING FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

In the heart of the Pentagon, a heavy oaken door leads to the supersecret National Military Command Center. No one gets through the door without presenting a color-coded Joint Chiefs of Staff identification badge, which armed guards scrutinize under ultraviolet light. In one section of the two-story center, shifts of officers and men from all four of the armed services maintain a round-the-clock vigil. A red telephone links them directly to the White House; a beige phone can instantly reach any U.S. military commander anywhere...

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