Defense Department analysts worry that the ability of the US to wage a prolonged war would be seriously endangered if the machine-tool manufacturing base shrinks further. Before the Defense Department publicly connected this security issue with the import quota issue, however, the machine-tool industry raised the national security issue in its petition for import quotas.
Which of the following, if ture, contributes most to an explanation of the machine-tool industry's raising the issue above regarding national security? A. when the aircraft industries retooled, they provided a large amount of work for tool builders. B. the Defense Department is only marginally concerned with the effects of foreign competition on the machine-tool industry. C the machine-tool industry encountered difficulty in obtaining governmental protection against imports on grounds other than defense. D. a few weapons important for defense consist of parts that do not require extensive machining. E. Several federal governmental programs have been designed which will enable domestic machine-tool manufacturing firms to compete sucessfully with foreign toolmakers.