Posted on 08/13/2021 2:59:18 PM PDT by MarvinStinson
Rep. Adam Smith: United States cannot afford 'arms race'
The top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee is pressuring the Biden administration to limit upgrades to the nuclear arsenal that military brass and experts consider vital.
Armed Services chairman Adam Smith (Wash.) on Monday sent a letter to the White House that asks President Biden to reduce the United States' nuclear arsenal as he considers the 2023 defense budget.
"When asked about the requirements for all of these systems, the Department of Defense quickly points to Russian and Chinese investment in nuclear weapons, which I fear leads us down the path to a newly invigorated and very dangerous arms race," Smith wrote. "The last decade has taught us, painfully, that we cannot afford to continue adding new requirements, capabilities, and platforms, and expect that they will be delivered on time and within budget."
While Smith has said he will not oppose upgrades to Vietnam-era ground-based nuclear missiles, he has consistently advocated for defense cuts. Smith's letter gives support to far-left Democrats who aim to curb the United States' nuclear arsenal, even as China and Russia grow their stockpiles at rapid speeds. The Washington Free Beacon reported in July that a cadre of Senate Democrats led by Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Jeff Merkley (Ore.) are lobbying the White House to reverse course on upgrades to land-based missiles that experts consider crucial.
Smith also called for the president to consider a "no first use" policy, a commitment that the United States will refrain from a nuclear strike on an adversary unless the adversary has already deployed that weapon. Whether adversaries will abide by such a policy appears to be an open question. Chinese propaganda videos disseminated in July threaten that Beijing will end its "no first use" policy and launch a nuclear strike on Japan if the country comes to the aid of Taiwan.
The letter comes in an increasingly unstable security environment. Commercial satellite images released this year show that China constructed two separate fields that together hold more than 200 nuclear missiles. Russia, meanwhile, is developing a massive nuclear arsenal, with the world's heaviest ballistic missile slated for service by 2022.
Just call it infrastructure. We can afford it.
How much treason does it take to wake up Republicucks?
Might as well just give our old nukes to the Taliban. We’re letting them have a bunch of other weapons.
The number one prerequisite to be a democrat politician is you have to be dumber than dirt and twice as ignorant.
WHAT WILL JOE DROP FROM THE F15S ON US THEN?
Biden himself ran on the promise of nearly a total denuking. Down to 3 or 4 SSBNs max. No air, no ICBMs. The Russians and Chinese are really licking their chops at the chance to take 2 or 3 boats out and then launch a first strike.
President Reagan brought about the demise of the Soviet Union by forcing them into an arms race they could not afford.
This is what it looks like from the “inside”! :(
Might as well just pull our pants down and get down on all fours.
Weapons that travel in a predictable ballistic arc are obsolete. A reentry vehicle must be able to maneuver and still hit its target or it’s a wasted shot. The percentage of weapons you would need to fire at any given target will rapidly increase. Both the Chinese and the Russians have demonstrated maneuvering reentry warheads. You can bet they are upgrading their existing inventory as rapidly as possible. Oh, and just for fun, the Russians have many more shots to waste than we do.
As far as not being able to afford an upgrade, how much does it cost to lose a war? It’s not like we’ll have an option if we’re attacked. The Left’s mission has always been to neuter America because being the most powerful country is “unfair.”
As Hillary Rodham Clinton would say “At this point, what difference does it make?”
Wait! Isn’t Biden going to need the nukes and F-15s to attack Americans?
Fire some of it at China. That will lower the number.
We should give them to poor countries that don’t have any.
/Leftthink
Think about this for a moment. When the flag drops and the nukes are flying, it won’t make much difference who has more. When the nukes are flying, it’s all over.
The only exception to this might be an EMP attack where 5-10 nukes could cripple the US.
We only need a few weapons
targets are:
Moscow
Bejing
Three gorges dam
Mecca
Medina
Tehran
Save the rest for later.
We lose many “Blue” state cities.
Oh well.
We’ll call it all a draw.
Use up some of nukes on Afghanistan
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