Space Force’s Guetlein Confirmed as Golden Dome Czar

The Senate confirmed Space Force Gen. Michael A. Guetlein to lead President Donald Trump’s Golden Dome missile defense program as “direct reporting program manager.”  

The July 17 voice vote clears the way for Guetlein, who has been the Vice Chief of Space Operations, to take over one of the biggest projects in Pentagon history, one that spans multiple services and agencies and will cost well over $100 billion.

Lt. Gen. Shawn N. Bratton, nominated to succeed Guetlein as vice chief, is still awaiting confirmation, leaving that job vacant for now.

The White House nominated Guetlein June 18, but didn’t put Bratton’s nomination forward until July 16. 

Golden Dome seeks to upgrade U.S. homeland missile defense to guard against ballistic, hypersonic, and cruise missile attacks. Trump floated the concept at his inauguration in January, approved a DOD plan at end of May and pegged the cost then at around $175 billion. The Space Force will play a major role in Golden Dome, providing missile warning and tracking satellites and potentially deploying space-based interceptors designed to destroy ballistic missiles early in their boost phase. 

Also involved: The Missile Defense Agency, Army, Navy, and Air Force, whose radars, interceptors, and networks will all contribute to the program. 

Tying it all together will be a monumental effort. In March, before he was nominated to lead Golden Dome, Guetlein said the project would require whole-of-nation and whole-of-government coordination, on par with the Manhattan Project, which developed the atomic bomb during World War II. 

In its 2026 budget request, the Pentagon asked for $25 billion for Golden Dome, funding both new and existing programs. The department has offered little additional detail. Guetlein is an experienced acquisition executive, having previously headed Space Systems Command, the Space Force’s main acquisition arm, served as deputy director at the National Reconnaissance Office, and been the program executive for programs and integration at the Missile Defense Agency. All of those organizations will contribute to Golden Dome. 

Who fills in for Guetlein as VCSO remains to be seen. A service spokesperson could not immediately say if Bratton, the nominee for the job, or someone else will fill it in an acting capacity. Air Force Director of Staff Lt. Gen. Scott L. Pleus has filled in as acting vice chief of staff since February, when Gen. James Slife was dismissed as part of a purge of senior military officers.  

Assuming Bratton is confirmed, it would mark the first time the Space Force has had four four-star generals. Bratton would join Guetlein, CSO Gen. B. Chance Saltzman, and Gen. Stephen N. Whiting, head of U.S. Space Command.