Two Futures Project Blog

Good news — Earlier today, in bipartisan fashion, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted to approve the New START treaty, sending it to the Senate floor where it needs 67 votes for ratification. But it’s not time to celebrate yet! Clearing committee is a big step in the right direction, but the tight Senate schedule means that unless Senators from both parties publicly call for an up-or-down vote on this treaty, it may not be ratified this year.

With strong bipartisan support, the time to ratify the New START treaty is now:

• The treaty makes us safer — it will reduce the number of deployed nuclear weapons in U.S. and Russian arsenals.
• The treaty allows U.S. inspectors to monitor Russian nukes. By the time the committee voted today, it’s been 285 days without on-site inspections of Russian nuclear weapons and facilities.
• The treaty has the overwhelming support of the military and national security experts of both parties, including current and former commanders of our nuclear weapons, Colin Powell, Henry Kissinger, and many others.
• The treaty is a symbol of peace and the common good, and has the support of religious groups from across the spectrum, including the World Evangelical Alliance, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and the National Council of Churches.

Please take time today to call your Senators and let them know the New START treaty is out of committee with Republican and Democratic support, and they need to join this bipartisan consensus. It will take only five minutes — simply visit the Two Futures Project START Action Center, find the Office Number for your Senators, and ask them to publically call for a vote to ratify the New START treaty this year.

It’s not often that we have the opportunity to weigh in on a concrete step that will improve nuclear security — these chances sometimes come around just once per year.

So take this opportunity to tell your elected officials that you won’t tolerate partisan nonsense when it comes to a treaty that’s good for national security and sound moral choice.

We need you to call the offices of your U.S. Senators and express your strong support of the treaty. It will take only five minutes — simply visit the Two Futures Project START Action Center, find the Office Number for your Senators and use our sample “call script.”

Last week, the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) was officially submitted to the U.S. Senate, with hearings expected to begin later this week. In order for this treaty to become law, the Senate must ratify it by a two-thirds majority — needing 67 votes.

There is no reason for this treaty not to receive unanimous support from the Senate based on its merits. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates recently wrote in a Wall Street Journal op-ed, “the treaty has the unanimous support of America’s military leadership.” Similarly, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen said during a briefing on the announcement of the START treaty, “I am as confident in its success as I am in its safeguards.”

However, the greatest enemy to its success in the Senate is partisan distraction, and the possibility that a handful of outspoken ideologues can derail or weaken the treaty. This would not only damage strategic relations between the US and Russia, it would be a huge step in the wrong direction toward nuclear insecurity.

Take action today for the peace and security of tomorrow.