Inauguration Day means it’s almost time for the nuclear football to shift from one president to another. But how does that work, exactly? And in a country built on a system of checks and balances, why does the President of the United States have complete and total control over the U.S. nuclear arsenal? How did […]
Brief Summary of Fiscal Year 2021 Defense and Energy and Water Appropriations Bills
By John Isaacs and Monica Montgomery In an end-of-the-year burst of energy after months of bitter disagreements and procrastination, Congress finally approved the fiscal year 2021 omnibus appropriations bill on December 21. The bill, totaling $1.4 trillion across 12 individual appropriations bills, was packaged with a $900 billion coronavirus relief bill and other various measures, totaling 5,593 pages. In a late-night session, the House took two separate votes on the measure, passing four appropriations bills, including the Department of Defense bill, 327-85 and […]
2020 Mailbag Special Episode
You asked, we answered! In our annual year-end mailbag podcast episode, host Geoff Wilson and Senior Policy Director Alexandra Bell take on listener-submitted questions, covering topics such as the future of nuclear policy under a Biden administration, the National Defense Authorization Act, “exotic” nuclear weapons and more. Nukes of Hazard · 2020 Mailbag Special Episode
Congress is (finally) paying attention to missile defense costs and failures
By John D. Isaacs and Samuel M. Hickey In the recently completed Fiscal Year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), Congress takes some significant steps toward reining in the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) and its wayward acquisition strategy. In the bill, Congress levels criticisms at the Pentagon’s handling of missile defense programs, reduces the missile […]
