Nuclear Weapons Lurking in the Stimulus

Amidst the billions of dollars for good things like creating jobs and investment in infrastructure is $1 billion in funding for nuclear weapons. It’s all part of the economic stimulus plan.

The Senate will vote today on the economic stimulus plan, and I need you to tell them to cut the nuclear pork.  Please click here to send an urgent email.  Your message will be sent to the Senate, Congress, and directly to the President.

The Senate Appropriations Committee is taking advantage of a dire economic crisis to sneak in wasteful spending for nuclear weapons, hidden from the public eye. At a time when President Obama has pledged to “set a goal of a world without nuclear weapons, and pursue it,” a billion dollars to feed the nuclear weapons complex is irresponsible and wasteful – and it will do nothing for our economy.

Here’s where this hits you and me, right in the pocketbook. A group of centrist senators is trying to attract votes by cutting programs from the stimulus and they have proposed cutting $13.9 billion in Pell Grants for college students and $1.1 billion to Head Start to lower the price tag of the $900 billion economic stimulus plan. Why should low-income children lose access to education so the nuclear weapons labs can beef up their budgets? Click here to tell the people you elected to say “no” to nuclear pork in the economic recovery plan.

There are more effective ways to stimulate the economy than funding nuclear weapons. The House version of the stimulus does not have any funding for nuclear weapons, so we have a chance to cut it out in the final version.  Last year, you helped us stop funding for new nuclear weapons, and by taking action today, we can stop wasteful spending on nuclear weapons again. Please click here.

Sincerely,

Kevin M. Martin
Executive Director
Peace Action