45 Democratic lawmakers in the U.S. House are calling on Congressional leadership in both chambers to cut $100 billion from a “bloated nuclear weapons budget” as part of the ongoing so-called “fiscal cliff” negotiations.
Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-MA), a senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, issued a press release citing the letter sent to House Speaker John Boehner (R), Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D) and Senators Harry Reid (D) and Mitch McConell (R) charging that “Our oversized nuclear weapons arsenal fails to reflect historic reality” and that “Our spending on radioactive relics of the past requires a reality check” after the successful conclusion of the Cold War.
The 45 House Dems list unnecessary current expenditures for “refurbishing a nuclear bomb that no one wants…a Uranium processing facility we do not need…a nuclear bomber when the ones we have will last for decades.”
The letter, (posted in full below) implores leadership:
While the letter from the largely progressive Congressional members appears to be a rational step in the right direction, it raises additional questions. Among them: (1) Given that two nations, the U.S. and Russia, possess 95% of the world’s nuclear arsenals, and given that each nation’s individual arsenal is capable of destroying all life on the planet many times over, does it make sense to simply trim only $100 billion from an estimated $640 billion in nuclear weapons expenditures scheduled over the next ten years? (2) Why not couple the immediate request to trim $100 billion from the nuclear weapons budget with a call for a joint resolution of Congress calling upon the President to initiate negotiations under the auspices of the U.N. for a multilateral Treaty that would entail the eventual dismantling of all nuclear arsenals?…
The full text of the letter from Congressional Dems follows below. Along with Markey, it was said to have been signed by John Conyers, Jr., Rush D. Holt, Barbara Lee, Raul M. Grijalva, Charles B. Rangel, Lynn Woolsey, Donna M.C. Christensen, Peter A. DeFazio, Jared Polis, Sam Farr, Jerrold Nadler, Michael M. Honda, Barney Frank, James P. McGovern, Hansen Clarke, Earl Blumenauer, Alcee L. Hastings, Maxine Waters, Jan Schakowsky, Keith Ellison, William Lacy Clay, Lois Capps, Bruce Braley, John Yarmuth, James P. Moran, Peter Welch, Timothy H. Bishop, John W. Olver, John F. Tierney, Marcy Kaptur, Laura Richardson, Richard E. Neal, John Lewis, Janice Hahn, Donna Edwards, Maurice D. Hinchey, Betty McCollum, William Keating, Jim McDermott, David E. Price, Yvette D. Clarke, Carolyn B. Maloney, Doris Matsui, and Hank Johnson…
The Honorable John Boehner
The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
The Honorable Harry Reid
The Honorable Mitch McConnell
Dear Congressional Leaders,
Our bloated nuclear weapons budget defies fiscal reality. Our oversized nuclear weapons arsenal fails to reflect historical reality. Our spending on radioactive relics of the past requires a reality check. We won the Cold War. The Berlin Wall fell. The threats we face today have dramatically changed in the past two decades. At a time when our need for fiscal responsibility has never been greater, we must cut our nuclear weapons budget.
Unchecked spending on nuclear weapons threatens to push us over the fiscal cliff. It imperils both our national and economic security. It makes us less safe by preventing investment in the systems that our soldiers need most. It jeopardizes our future by forcing cuts to programs that fund life-saving medical research, train teachers, and ensure seniors and the most vulnerable receive essential healthcare.
The Ploughshares Fund estimates that the U.S. is projected to spend over $640 billion on nuclear weapons and related programs over the next ten years. At a time when the government must tighten its belt, we cannot continue to spend at these levels. We can save hundreds of billions of dollars by restructuring the U.S. nuclear program for the 21st century.
We know there is plenty of waste in the nuclear weapons budget. We are refurbishing a nuclear bomb that no one wants. We are building a Uranium processing facility we do not need. We are planning for a new nuclear bomber when the ones we have will last for decades. In fact, just one nuclear bomb life extension program will cost $10 billion for an estimated 400 weapons. At that price, we could buy each bomb’s weight in solid gold. And this would be a better investment. Gold appreciates, while money spent on this nuclear bomb is money down the drain.
Cuts to nuclear weapons programs upwards of $100 billion over the next ten years are possible. Specific programs have been identified that can be decreased in scope or eliminated to bring our nuclear forces into better alignment with our 21st century needs. Such cuts should be included in any final deal to avoid the fiscal cliff.
Cut Minuteman missiles. Do not cut Medicare and Medicaid. Cut nuclear-armed B-52 and B-2 bombers. Do not cut Social Security. Invest in the research and education that will drive our future prosperity, not in weapons for a war we already won.
Yes, yes, yes. But first we have to get the psycho republicans out of the outhouse and take away their keys. Keys to the outhouse. They’re completely constipated, can’t shit, never heard of gastroenterology or proctology. Keys to the car. They only know how to drive off cliffs. Keys to anything. If your sole contribution is anarchic disruption in a never-ending attempt to subvert the will of the people as expressed through our electoral choices and thus completely undermine our form of government, you have forfeited the right to participate. Take away the fucking filibuster. Until they can demonstrate some modicum of sane, adult behavior they need a big timeout in their room. With no internet or phone.
Ernie asked:
Indeed we need to cut half of the imperialistic warmaking budget.
It has made us persona non grata in the world, as the recent U.N. vote on the Palestinians revealed.
A landslide vote, ~95% voted against us, because we voted against Palestinians.
The imperialistic invasions and ghastly behavior of the military will not get us through life intelligently.
Back to diplomacy and decency.
Dredd: If by “us” you mean the American people, I’d have to take exception to the vote for Palestinian statehood was a “vote against us.”
That vote shows how the policies of the U.S. elites, whether we deal with Israel/Palestine or nuclear arms or global climate change, are at odds with the needs of humanity as a whole.
Any bill along these lines has just got to be called something like the Ronald Reagan Nuclear Threat Reduction Act. I’m sure someone else will come up with a better name to follow the “Ronald Reagan” part, but that part is non-negotiable.