“The most important thing he could do is lay out the broad agenda for the next three and a half years,� said John Isaacs, executive director of the Council for a Livable World, an advocacy group.

“The most important thing he could do is lay out the broad agenda for the next three and a half years,� said John Isaacs, executive director of the Council for a Livable World, an advocacy group.

For Obama, “these are all high hills to climb,” said John D. Isaacs, executive director of the Council for a Livable World, an arms control advocacy group in Washington. His group is urging Obama to take unilateral steps to reduce U.S. reliance on nuclear weapons.

It is time to truly end the US war in Afghanistan. It is pure folly and wholly counterproductive for the US to keep fighting in Afghanistan, paying the highest price in life and treasure, for one more day, let alone until a specific calendar date is reached. The current US strategy, which lacks critical political and economic transition elements, will neither accomplish US political objectives, nor provide security for the people of Afghanistan. As violence is currently on the rise, one can reasonably wonder what has been gained from years of remarkable expense and sacrifice.

“Developing a workable missile defense system for a new East Coast site is a long way off and would cost billions before one shovel breaks ground in New York,� Isaacs said.