First of all, the term “lame duck” conjures unfair characterizations of gimpy fowl, who, despite their handicap, are still perfectly capable of contributing great things to the flock.
The same goes for outgoing reps in a “lame duck” session of Congress, who, despite not being invited to the Hill for another term, can still make enormous contributions to the nation.
For lame duckers in the waning days of the 111th United States Congress, the START treaty poses precisely this sort of opportunity.
The milestone measure has been awaiting Senate ratification ever since Presidents Obama and Medvedev put their John Hancocks to the agreement last April.
With only two months to spare in the 111th, it’s now or not-for-a-while for the pressing pact.
START, the largest arms reduction treaty in a generation, limits the overwhelming nuclear arsenals of the United States and Russia to 1,550 deployed strategic nukes apiece.
Deployed means active, and strategic refers to the sort of nuke big enough to take out a beloved world city. The treaty doesn’t cover tactical nukes, nor does it require nukes to actually be destroyed; instead, they must be removed from their delivery systems and stored somewhere secure, preferably at room temperature.
Despite its relatively modest markdowns, the measure will reduce each country’s nuclear stockpile by a third, and open up both programs to more transparent inspections and verification.
The U.S. and Russia currently roost on the world’s largest reserves of atomic weapons, far outnumbering the cache of the planet’s remaining nuclear powers combined. Nowhere else on Earth are two well-armed rivals considering a draw-down of START’s size and scope, nor does an opportunity exist elsewhere to demonstrate as significant a step toward nonproliferation.
Even with the agreement's marginal reductions and increased prospects for global security, detractors in the GOP are spooked that START will limit U.S. defense capabilities.
President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton, Secretary of Energy Chu, the head of the National Nuclear Security Administration, and the directors of three national laboratories have all stated in certain terms that START will not reduce the nation’s nuclear deterrent, nor its ability to modernize the existing stockpile. Still, careless rumor mills inside and outside of Congress spin misinformation.
Fortunately, in a government of the people, for the people, and by the people, the citizens of the United States get to make up their own minds about START, and by extension, the minds of their elected representatives.
If you know like we know that START’s a good start for non-proliferation, one that leaves the door open for more reductions in the future, give your senator a holler and demand a "yea" vote on the treaty.
Sixty-seven votes are needed for ratification. Democrats hold 59 seats in the Senate, meaning eight Republicans, lame or not, must cross the Capitol’s ideologically booby-trapped aisle to reduce the threat of the world’s most dangerous weapon.
Give ‘em a crutch and a nudge.
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