Quigley, University of Chicago Harris School Host Panel on Nuclear Weapons Policy
CHICAGO—Friday, U.S. Representative Mike Quigley (IL-05) joined the University of Chicago Harris School to host "The Future of U.S. Nuclear Weapons: Establishing Sustainable Security Policy," a panel discussion on reforming U.S. nuclear weapons policy to fit our current budgetary and national security environment.
"Over the next decade, the United States is set to spend hundreds of billions of dollars upgrading a nuclear weapons arsenal designed to fight a Cold War that no longer exists," said Rep. Quigley. "We can no longer pretend that a large nuclear stockpile will protect us from the most immediate security threats the United States faces. Rather than wasting tax dollars on the status quo, it's time to make smart investments and remake an efficient nuclear force that meets our 21st century fiscal and strategic needs."
PHOTO: Rep. Quigley opens the panel discussion on nuclear weapons policy
(Photo Courtesy of Lloyd DeGrane/University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy)
Friday's panel was moderated by Harris School of Public Policy Dean Colm O'Muircheartaigh. Other panelists included Dr. Kennette Benedict, the Executive Director and Publisher of the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, Dr. Robert Rosner, Professor of Astrophysics and Astronomy at the University of Chicago, and Stephen Schwartz, editor of the Nonproliferation Review and WMD Junction.
The panelists discussed a range of proposals for reducing the nuclear weapons arsenal and reforming defense spending to address emerging national security threats, including eliminating programs like the B61 bomb, refurbishing and retiring our existing Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBMs) force and improving nonproliferation efforts by securing nuclear materials in unstable places around the world.
Rep. Quigley is an outspoken advocate for nuclear arms reduction, working in the House Appropriations Committee to overhaul unlimited defense spending. Last year, he urged a one-third reduction in America's ICBMs stockpile, and worked to cut $23.7 million in wasteful funding for the B61 nuclear bomb program. He is the author of Reinventing Government: The Federal Budget, a report which offers 60 recommendations to save $2 trillion over the next 10 years.
