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No Means NO on New Nukes
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Progressive Portal
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Mar 15, 2005 18:04 PST
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JUST MONTHS AFTER CONGRESS ELIMINATED FUNDING FOR NEW NUKES,
BUSH SLIPS PLANS FOR "BUNKER BUSTERS" BACK INTO BUDGET
[From Peace Action <http://www.peace-action.org>]
In late 2004 the Republican-controlled Congress defied the Bush
administration and "zeroed out" funding for two projects sought by the
Pentagon: the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator, or "bunker buster," and
the Advanced Concepts Initiative, a plan for research into a new
generation of weapons known as "mini-nukes." The Member of Congress who
led the fight against these weapons, Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA), called the
decision the "biggest victory that arms-control advocates in Congress
have had since 1992."
George Bush and his cronies in the military-industrial complex don't
give up easily, though. Less than three months after the Congressional
vote cutting funding for the weapons, the administration submitted a
budget for fiscal 2006 that would revive them. Buried within the mammoth
spending plan are appropriations to continue research on bunker busters
and for a new project called the Reliable Replacement Warhead program,
which would put 100 weapons designers to work on a new generation of
warheads - both mini and maxi - to replace the current stockpile.
CONTINUED BELOW ...
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+ "You Cannot Simultaneously Prevent & Prepare for War"
+ Einstein quote and photo on a bumper sticker,
+ available at: http://www.progressiveportal.org/store/
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The amounts of money requested are relatively small: $10.3 million for
bunker-buster research and another $10 million for the
warhead-replacement program. But history shows that the further research
on new weapons proceeds, the harder it becomes to prevent their
deployment, because powerful interest groups in and out of the
government develop stakes in the new projects.
Last year's success shows that it's still possible to stop these
new-nuke projects, even with the Republicans in firm control of the
Congress. Rep. David L. Hobson (R-OH), who chairs the House
Appropriations subcommittee that will handle the proposed appropriations
as well as the rest of the $6 billion annual budget of the U.S.
nuclear-weapons complex, recently said he wants to raise fundamental
questions this year about the U.S. nuclear stockpile. ("Why are we still
preparing to fight the last war?" he asked.)
For now, Rep. Markey is asking his Congressional colleagues to sign on
to a letter opposing funding for the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator and
the Reliable Replacement Warhead. Urge your Representative to sign the
Markey letter.
Take Action
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Send a message to your Representative at:
http://hq.demaction.org/dia/organizations/Peaceact/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=440
More Information
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http://www.counterpunch.org/stclair02092005.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A9148-2005Feb8.html
(free online registration required)
http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/news/politics/10840957.htm
(free online registration required)
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