In reference to the cuts, former Senator Dorgan said: “Terrorist groups are working overtime to acquire nuclear weapons with which to terrorize the world. Our country needs to show leadership in preventing terrorists from acquiring nuclear weapons. Cutting federal spending now on the nuclear non-proliferation programs would be a very dangerous mistake.”
Quote of the Day: Sen. Sessions praises Obama’s nuke budget edition
“I will say, Mr. Chairman, it does appear that on the budget request from the administration, gets this pretty close to where we need to go, and I’d like to hear your positions. It seems like we’ve had a move that recognizes the triad’s importance and …
Gen. Gard, Lt. Col. Shaffer Joint Statement on FY15 Defense Budget Request
“Far too much waste, inefficiency, and special interest programming plague the defense budget and drive up costs for the taxpayer. Our country faces serious fiscal and budgetary challenges that must be addressed. If spending more for defense than the next 10 country combined, many of them our allies, is not enough to keep America safe, then something is terribly wrong. Clear opportunities exist to take the politics out of national security spending and ensure that strategic decision makers have a clearer voice in defining priorities.”
New Obama Budget Slashes Nonproliferation
More FY 2015 budget analysis over on the mother ship, this time on the Obama administration’s disturbing cuts to the National Nuclear Security Administration’s (NNSA) core nuclear and radiological security programs. Here’s a teaser:
In its Fiscal Year (FY) 2015 budget request for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), the Obama administration made it resoundingly clear that it is in a full-on retreat from accelerating the security of nuclear and radiological materials around the globe.
This decision is difficult to fathom, given that as recently as this week the President stated that the number one thing that keeps him up at night is “loose nukes.” Likewise the 2010 Nuclear Posture Review identified nuclear terrorism as “today’s most immediate and extreme danger.”
For the third year in a row the NNSA budget submission continues a disturbing trend of funding nuclear weapons and other programs at the expense of core nuclear and radiological material security programs. This year, the tradeoff is starker than it has ever been.
The request slashes nearly eighteen percent compared to the FY 2014 enacted level from core threat reduction and nonproliferation programs such as the Global Threat Reduction Initiative (GTRI) and the International Materials Protection and Cooperation (IMPC) program while increasing weapons funding nearly seven percent (including a massive 20 percent increase for the unnecessary, over budget, and behind schedule B61 mod 12 life extension program). The request also increases funding for NNSA’s Naval Reactors program by nearly 26 percent.
Roughly half of the funding cut to the Defense Nuclear Non-Proliferation account (or approximately $250 million) came out of core programs, while the other half was to the controversial Mixed Oxide (MOX) fuel program in South Carolina.
Read the whole thing here.
Eliminate Slush Funds & Wish Lists
“Fundamentally, this slush fund and wish list are an attempt to exceed the Murray-Ryan budget caps and funnel more money into the Pentagon,” noted Executive Director John Isaacs, a 35-year veteran of Capitol Hill politics and budget fights.
