A Major Victory on Nuclear Weapons

From Union of Concerned Scientists:

Dear Mike, Last week, Congress eliminated funding for two of the most provocative nuclear weapons programs and cut funding for two other nuclear-related initiatives. This is a major victory countering the Bush administration's dangerous nuclear weapons agenda and one for which we all can give thanks. And don't forget, you played a central role in our success. In July, we asked you to tell your senators to eliminate funds for these programs, and thousands of you sent emails and faxes. Your actions mattered. All funding was eliminated for both the Robust Nuclear Earth Penetrator, a dangerous--and scientifically questionable--program to design a new nuclear "bunker buster," and for research into other new types of nuclear weapons. In addition, funding was sharply cut for a new factory to make plutonium "pits," the core of nuclear weapons, and efforts to shorten the time required to prepare for a full-scale nuclear weapons test were pushed back. These programs all threatened to undermine the United States' leadership role in nuclear nonproliferation. We cannot credibly ask other countries to restrain their nuclear weapons programs while we aggressively advance work on new weapons. This campaign would not have succeeded without leadership from Representative David Hobson (R-OH), whose early cuts in the House set the tone for the eventual elimination of funding. Thank you again for your support in helping us achieve this victory. We have sent a clear message to Congress and the administration that developing new nuclear weapons is not acceptable, and that the United States must lead by example to achieve true security....

At this point in time, I'll post just about anything that's good news for all of us.