John Isaacs
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
202-546-0795 ext. 2222
jdi AT armscontrolcenter DOT org
John Isaacs is the Executive Director of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation where his work focuses on national security issues in Congress, Iraq, missile defense, and nuclear weapons.
Isaacs is one of the leaders of the nation's arms control community and has long been an expert on the workings of Congress. He has represented Council for a Livable World, the Center's sister organization, on Capitol Hill since 1978. Isaacs previously served as a Legislative Assistant on foreign affairs to Representative Stephen Solarz (D-NY), a Legislative Representative on foreign policy and defense budget for Americans for Democratic Action, and a Foreign Service Officer in Vietnam.
Isaacs has published articles in the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Atlanta Journal, St. Louis Post Dispatch, Christian Science Monitor, Nuclear Times, Arms Control Today, American Journal of Public Health, and Technology Review.
Isaacs holds a B.A. from Dartmouth College and an M.A. from the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.
Click here to view blog posts written by John Isaacs
ISAACS IN THE NEWS
John Isaacs interviewed on New START vote delay by The New York Times.
“If this treaty’s going to be so complicated, God knows how difficult it’s going to be for the test ban treaty, particularly after an election when Republicans are expected to pick up seats,” said John Isaacs, executive director of the Council for a Livable World, the sister organization to the Center for Arms Control and Non-proliferation.
John Isaacs interviewed on New START vote delay by PBS News Hour
"They want to have as strong a vote in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee as possible so there will be more Republican votes in the full Senate," said John Isaacs, executive director of the Council for a Livable World, the sister organization of the Center for Arms Control and Non-proliferation. But Isaacs said the delay would not be a problem as long as the full Senate vote is not too long in coming. "It's important for U.S.-Russian relations, and the longer it hangs around the less helpful it is to improving those relations."
John Isaacs interviewed on New START vote delay by Global Security Newswire
"I don't expect [Reid] to set a date until the committee has actually acted," John Isaacs, executive director of the Council for a Livable World, the sister organization of the Center for Arms Control and Non-proliferation. All of the political horse-trading should be complete once the August recess comes to a close, he said. At that point, the committee and floor votes could be dispatched relatively quickly, simply formalizing the politicking accomplished behind the scenes, Isaacs said. For that reason, he anticipates the floor vote will take place before the elections, when Democrats are widely viewed at risk of losing a half-dozen or so Senate seats.
John Isaacs quoted on New START in the New York Times
“To move so slowly down to 1,550 deployed strategic nuclear weapons, it doesn’t make any sense,” said John Isaacs, executive director of the Council for a Livable World. “I think we could easily go down to 1,000 or below regardless of the Russians.”
John Isaacs quoted in Reuters article on New START
"I'm pretty confident that if we can get this treaty to a final vote, not only will the treaty pass, but it will pass with a very large majority," said John Isaacs, Executive Director of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation.
John Isaacs Interviewed about nuclear weapons policy by Xinhua News Agency
On April 6, John Isaacs, executive director of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, talked about New START, the U.S. Nuclear Posture Review, and the Nuclear Security Summit with China's Xinhua News Agency.
RECENT ARTICLES BY ISAACS
Feb 24, 2010 The Obama disarmament paradox: A rebuttal
Greg Mello's recent Bulletin article "The Obama Disarmament Paradox" distorts the Obama administration's nuclear agenda by making unjustified assumptions that discredit President Barack Obama's historic commitment to seek a nuclear-weapon-free world, write John Isaacs and Lt. Gen. Robert Gard, Jr. (USA, ret.) in the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
Dec 4, 2009 Commitment to Nuclear Non-Proliferation: New Directions under the Obama Administration
In this speech delivered to the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, John Isaacs argues that we have entered an era of great change on nuclear weapons issues. The election of Barack Obama as President has provided an opportunity for unprecedented transformation. If we do not see substantial progress in the next six months, however, the President’s vision will be in jeopardy.
Jul 22, 2009 Bargaining Chip or Gas Mask? Prospects for Missile Defense
In this full-length article published by the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, John Isaacs and Travis Sharp review the history of missile defense since World War II in search of insights that can be applied today. Isaacs and Sharp argue that President Obama retains two viable options for U.S. missile defense in Europe: “The Bargaining Chip" or "The Gas Mask."
Jul 2, 2009 Backgrounder on Obama-Medvedev July 2009 Moscow Summit
From July 6 to 8, 2009, U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian Federation President Dmitry Medvedev will meet in Moscow for their first full summit. High on their agenda is the impending expiration of the landmark 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) and the ongoing negotiations to replace it with a new strategic arms reduction agreement.
Jun 23, 2009 Will the Senate Support New Nuclear Arms Reductions?
The one major piece of President Obama's arms control agenda that could be completed this year is a follow-on agreement to START. Most arms control experts agree that ratification with more than 67 Senate votes will be necessary to build momentum for more controversial treaties to follow. John Isaacs and Kingston Reif dissect the domestic politics of START in the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists Online.
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