In December, the Navy awarded General Dynamics a contract for the first Columbia-class strategic submarine, which will replace the aging Ohio-class subs in their critical nuclear deterrence mission. All in all, the modernization program is expected to cost upward of $110 billion and enjoys solid bipartisan support; even opponents of first-strike nuclear policies consider the sea-based leg of the nuclear triad to be the "most survivable" and therefore the most critical to modernize. John is joined by Rich Abott, Defense Daily's Navy…
