Clinton: Senate Must Ratify START During Lame-Duck Session

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton paid a rare visit to Capitol Hill Thursday, meeting with Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-Mass.) to discuss efforts to ratify the new START missile treaty between the United States and Russia. Afterwards, Clinton addressed reporters.

“Support for new START by our entire military leadership, our intelligence community, six former secretaries of state, five former secretaries of defense, three former national security advisors, and seven former commanders of U.S. Strategic Command is an extraordinary endorsement of why this treaty needs to be passed, and passed in the lame duck session.”

Kerry’s committee passed the treaty 14-4 earlier this month. 67 votes are required to fully ratify START.

“I look forward to the vote in the lame duck session that will once again demonstrate the Senate joining all of its predecessors in years past to continue to support arms control treaty,” Clinton said.