“Senator Johnson’s leadership has created an opportunity for one of the most important foreign policy initiatives in a decade to succeed,� said Laicie Heeley, Director of Middle East and Defense Policy at Council for a Livable World. “South Dakota has a long tradition of sending strong leaders to Congress that advocate for a common sense foreign policy; Senator Johnson is a solid example of that tradition.�

“Congressman Hoyer’s leadership has created an opportunity for one of the most important foreign policy initiatives in a decade to succeed,� said Laicie Heeley, Director of Middle East and Defense Policy at Council for a Livable World. “Congressman Hoyer has been a champion of policies that make sense and ensure U.S. security. This is what the first-step deal achieves.�

“During his military career and tenure in the House of Representatives, Adm. Sestak has been a champion for a pragmatic foreign and national security policy that addresses America’s 21st century security threats,� said Jules Zacher of Philadelphia, a member of Council for a Livable World’s Board of Directors. “We’ve proudly supported Adm. Sestak in his previous House and Senate races and are excited to offer our support again.�

“The future of diplomacy with Iran is looking up for the first time in more than three decades,� said John Isaacs, executive director of Council for a Livable World. “However, diplomacy between longtime antagonists is fragile. Unfortunately, he other options are war or a nuclear armed Iran, neither of which is in the security interest of the United States.�

“The United States should not rush to deploy a missile defense site on the East Coast until a need for such a site is identified and the interceptors to be deployed at the site prove effective and suitable in operationally realistic tests,� said John Isaacs, Executive Director of the Council for a Livable World.