When the START I treaty expired at the end of 2009, the U.S. lost the ability to inspect Russian nuclear arsenals to make sure they are not building new nuclear weapons. It has now been over 355 days since we’ve had inspectors in Russia verifying their arsenal and it is time we get back to Ronald Reagan’s “trust, but verify.”
The New START treaty fixes that problem and makes Americans safer by making significant cuts in the U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenals. While the treaty enjoys strong support from foreign policy experts on both the left and the right and multiple polls show the American public overwhelmingly favors the treaty, Republicans in the Senate are fighting against holding a vote on treaty ratification.
It is crucial to put pressure on the Senate to pass New START this year. Below is a list of Republican Senators who will be important in deciding the fate of this treaty. If you live in one of these important states, please take a few minutes to call your Senators and let them know that you support New START and urge them to swiftly approve this treaty! Click here to get your Senator’s numbers and a call script you can use to speak with their office!
Sen. John McCain – Arizona
Sen. Saxby Chambliss – Georgia
Sen. Johnny Isakson – Georgia
Sen. Mark Kirk – Illinois
Sen. Richard Lugar – Indiana
Sen. Susan Collins – Maine
Sen. Olympia Snowe – Maine
Sen. Scott Brown – Massachusetts
Sen. Johnny Cochran – Mississippi
Sen. Judd Gregg – New Hampshire
Sen. Lindsay Graham – South Carolina
Sen. Bob Corker – Tennessee
Sen. Lamar Alexander – Tennessee
Sen. Bob Bennett – Utah
In an op-ed in The Washington Post, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates wrote:
Before this session of Congress ends, we urge senators to approve an arms control treaty that would again allow U.S. inspectors access to Russian strategic sites and reduce the number of nuclear weapons held by both nations to a level not seen since the 1950s.
New START is a top national security priority and we cannot let this drop off the agenda this year.
We need your help to get this done! Click here to call your Senator!
Help spread the word. Please pass this message along to your friends and family in any of these eleven states!
Thanks for all of your hard work!!
