House Dem Urges Supercommittee To Look At Nukes

Rep. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) called on the Super Committee  at a news conference on Tuesday to make extensive cuts from the U.S. nuclear weapons budget over the next decade.

“The Soviets are long gone yet the stock piles remain,” Markey said, pointing out that there are currently 5,000 nuclear weapons in the U.S. stockpile that cost American tax payers $50 billion every year. 

“That makes no sense,” Markey declared. 

When asked by TRNS about the very real threat of Iran developing nuclear weapons, he passed the question along to General Robert Gard Jr., chairman of the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation.

“We are not going to stop Iran from enriching Uranium by maintaing 5000 nuclear weapons in your stockpile,” Gard explained. “Getting down to 1000 nuclear weapons to deploy ought to be a sufficient warning to them that they probably ought not to imploy the weapons should they develop it.”

“We cannot make ourself any safer with more nuclear weapons,” Markey added. “America needs another nuclear weapon as much as Lady Gaga needs another outfit.” 

Markey advocated that the “excess” money used for nuclear weapons would be better utilized in funding for cancer and heart disease research institutions, healthcare for senior citizens and child nutrition programs.  

65 members of the House of Representatives have joined with Markey in this effort to cut $20 billion annually from the nuclear weapons program so that $200 billion could be used for funding family programs. 

“Simply put,” Markey concluded, “we must freeze the nukes and fund the future.”

Click here to see photos from today’s news conference 

Iran Presents An Immediate Danger, Warns Diplomat

John DuBois- New Mexico/Talk Radio News Service

Dore Gold, a former Isreali Diplomat, joined with Republican House members Wednesday to discuss the threat posed by a nuclear armed Iran.

"We are in a dangerous position with Iran," said Gold. "The time is five minutes before midnight and we cannot drag this out," Gold added, a reference to the symbolic doomsday clock that tracks the possibility of nuclear weapons use.

House Minority Whip Eric Cantor (R-Va.) stated that he feels concerned and "fears a policy of engagement with Iran will lead down a dangerous path."

The speakers stated that the International Atomic Agency reports a steady growth in low enriched uraninium stocks linked with Iran and that the Islamic Republic is steadily working on the production of warheads.

"The time is now for Congress to in act the strongest sanctions against the regime in Iran," Rep Mike Pence (R-Ind.) said, referring to the proposed Iran Petroleum Sanctions Act. Pence called upon Democrats to support the legislation.

Pence Recognizes Dissenters In Iran

By Courtney Ann Jackson-Talk Radio News Service

U.S. Congressman Mike Pence (R-Ind.) has introduced a resolution to show support for citizens in Iran who voted against President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Rep. Pence described these citizens as being in a struggle for “freedom, civil liberties and the protection of the rule of law.” The Congressman said the resolution will also acknowledge U.S. concern over irregularities reported in the June 12 Iranian Presidential election.

Pence added that the resolution “will condemn the violence against demonstrators by pro-government militia in Tehran in the wake of the elections. It will affirm our belief in the individuality of individual rights and the importance of democratic and fair elections.”

The Congressman remarked that he appreciated President Obama’s comments yesterday about the troubling violence in Tehran. However, he believes the administration should do more to express the “unqualified support of the American people” for Iranians fighting for free elections and democracy.

“We cannot stand idly by, speak of Iran’s sovereignty, speak of her own right to choose her own leadership at a time when hundreds of thousands of Iranians are risking their lives to stand up for free elections and democracy,” added Pence.

The resolution is titled H.R. 549.

The view from Tehran

The Woodrow Wilson Center held a discussion on “Iran, Iraq and the United States: The View from Tehran” with Selig S. Harrison, senior scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Center and director of the Asia Program of the Center for International Policy. Harrison visited Tehran in February, his second visit in the past nine months, where he has met with advisors, specialists, scholars and diplomats. He said his two trips to Iran had a limited objective: “to explore the terms for a modus vivendi [an agreement to disagree] in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Gulf.”

Harrison said that in Washington “the focus of most discussions on Iran is the nuclear issue,” but in Tehran “what they want to talk about is Iraq.” He said that when President George W. Bush “destroyed the Saddam regime in the name of democracy” Iran hoped that the Shiite majority “would come into its own and that Iraq would tilt toward Iran after the American occupation ended.” He said the president did not have the “Iran and the Shiite connection on his mind” and that Pentagon advisors “were not worried about empowering Iran.” But he says now “we have to give serious attention to Iran’s view of what should come next in Iran.”

Harrison said he has been told that Iran is “ready to cooperate in stabilizing Iraq” but only if the U.S. sets a timetable to gradually withdraw combat forces and accepts Iran’s “right to be a major player in postwar Baghdad.” He said Iran wants a “friendly” Iraq, meaning one dominated by the Shiite majority. The Iranian officials he met with envisioned a bargain where the U.S. would “end its current military offensive against Moqtada Al-Sadr [Shiite politician in Baghdad]” and Iran would “pledge not to give him missiles capable of hitting the Green Zone.”

Harrison said that the Iranian perception is that the U.S. is to blame for “stepping up the power struggle among Shiite factions” because they believe the U.S. hoped that moving up the provincial elections would increase Sunni strength in the councils. He said “we’ve started something that will be difficult to stop, but from Iran’s point of view ending the “Sunni Awakening” must go with cooperation in stabilizing Iraq.” His view is that if the U.S. withdraws and if Iraq tilts to Tehran, the Sunnis will have to “accept rule by the Shiite majority” and that the U.S. has a moral obligation to “join with Saudi Arabia to prevent their persecution.”

Harrison also provided a “word about the nuclear issue.” He said that “the U.S. is not serious about a negotiated settlement or it would not be insisting on the suspension of enrichment as a precondition for negotiations.” He said Iran was conned into suspension at the onset of negotiations in 2004, and that they will not be conned again. He believes that given a settlement in Iraq, a freeze on weapons-grade enrichment under IAEA inspections will be possible, provided the U.S. “is prepared to make a formal commitment not to use U.S. nuclear weapons in the Gulf.”