Resolution of Thanks to Senator Cantwell and Representative Jayapal for Working to Curtail Nuclear Weponization

WHEREAS, Reducing the dangers from nuclear weapons remains one of our highest national security priorities; and

WHEREAS, Retaining the current U.S. arsenal of nearly 7,000 nuclear weapons defies common sense as well as fiscal reality, inasmuch as many nuclear policy experts believe that our national security objectives can be met with as few as 300 nuclear warheads; and

WHEREAS, The Department of Defense, assisted by the Department of Energy, plans to replace the nuclear submarine fleet, modernize and replace our Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles, build a new strategic bomber fleet and develop a nuclear cruse missile, while extending and modernizing nuclear warheads and making major investments in the nuclear weapons laboratory complex; and

WHEREAS, These efforts are estimated to cost up to 1.25 trillion dollars over the next 30 years; and

WHEREAS, A nuclear war involving even 0.01% of the world’s nuclear weapons stockpile would threaten life on the entire planet, including precipitation of a “nuclear winter” causing starvation of over two billion people; and

WHEREAS, One Trident submarine (eight of which are housed at the Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor) has the destructive potential of over 5,800 Hiroshima bombs; and

WHEREAS, The current U.S. policy of maintaining nuclear weapons on hair-trigger alert, refusing to adopt an explicit “no-first use” policy, and providing no checks on the President’s authority to launch a first-strike nuclear attack, are destabilizing and threaten national security; and

WHEREAS, As attested last year by General George Lee Butler, 1991-94 commander of the Strategic Air Command, “rationality has never been the hallmark of any nation pursuing a nuclear arsenal or thinking about its employment.  Such arsenals take on a life and logic of their own, commanding huge budgets and compelling decisions that march at an ever increasing tempo to the beat of fear, technology, status, and vested interests…”; and

WHEREAS, 122 nations voted in July to create a “Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons,” which would prohibit nations from developing, testing, producing, manufacturing, transferring, possessing, stockpiling, using or threatening to use nuclear weapons, and that treaty has now been signed by 50 of those nations; and

WHEREAS, Representative Pramila Jayapal has been a consistent and outspoken advocate for reducing our spending on nuclear weapons and the number of such weapons in the U.S. stockpile, as shown by such actions as her co-sponsorship of the Restricting First Use of Nuclear Weapons Act (HR 669), her signing the Blumenauer-Lee-Quigley “Dear Colleague” Letter addressing the new Nuclear Posture Review; and her voting to limit spending on the Long Range Stand-Off Cruse Missile and development of an intermediate ground-launched missile system;

THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED THAT:  The 21st Legislative District Democrats express our support for and appreciation of Rep. Jayapal’s and Sen. Cantwell’s valuable work to stop the expansion of nuclear weapons and reduce the threat of nuclear war.

 Adopted – 3/28/2018