Washington, D.C. -- Council for a Livable World, one of the nation’s oldest and most prestigious organizations devoted to national security issues, today announced the selection of former Colorado Senator Gary Hart as its chairman.
Hart replaces Jerome Grossman, now chairman emeritus of Council, who has served in that position since 1980.
Hart served as a Senator from Colorado from 1975 to 1987 and was an active member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
He was a candidate for his party's nomination for President of the United States in 1984 and 1988.
Hart has remained active on national security issues. He co-chaired both the U.S. Commission on National Security/ 21st Century, which issued three public reports forecasting the age of terrorism and outlined a new, post-Cold War national security policy, as well as the Council on Foreign Relations task force on homeland security, which recently released its report "America—Still Unprepared, Still in Danger."
Boston Globe columnist Scot Lehigh recently wrote a column saying that “Gary Hart has long been one of America's most interesting political intellectuals, someone not just provocative but prescient.�
Lehigh also noted that the commission chaired by Hart and former Sen. Warren Rudman of New Hampshire "predicted both that the United States was becoming increasingly vulnerable to terrorist attack and that 'Americans will likely die on American soil, possibly in large numbers.'"
Hart recently underscored the need for our nation to renew its commitment to improving national security by opining, "We are going to be attacked again, it is just a question of when. These are patient people. . . and they are coming to get us."
Council for a Livable World, founded in 1962 by nuclear pioneer Leo Szilard, has focused on political action to reduce the danger of nuclear weapons and increase national security. The Council actively works with Members of Congress on national security issues and its connected political action committee raised more than $1.5 million for congressional candidates in the 2006 election.
The Directors and staff of Council for a Livable World look forward to Senator Hart’s leadership for years to come.