Fw: Stop Funding for New Nuclear Weapons!

----- Original Message -----
From: "Kathy Guthrie"
To: "Miriam Vieni"
Sent: Thursday, March 31, 2005 4:18 PM
Subject: FCNL: Stop Funding for New Nuclear Weapons!

The Bush administration this year is reviving its proposal for a new
generation of "usable" nuclear weapons, often described as
"bunker busters." Your actions and the efforts of thousands
of others helped support efforts by Rep. David Hobson (OH) to eliminate
funding for these weapons in 2004. Now we need to mobilize again to
slam the door shut on these new nuclear weapons before the
administration proposal gains momentum.

ACT NOW!

Contact your representatives today. Urge them to call for the
elimination of all funding for the bunker buster weapons from the
defense authorization bill and the energy and water appropriations bill
that Congress is now drafting.

Also, thank Congress for eliminating funding for the bunker buster
weapons last year. Tell your representatives that new nuclear weapons
will not make the world more secure. Developing new nuclear weapons
sends a message to the rest of the world that nuclear weapons are
usable. This undermines U.S. security.

Contacting your members of Congress is easy. You can email or fax your
member of Congress for free by going to
http://capwiz.com/fconl/utr/1/HHRLEMWMYU/KECMEMXRQD/ Once there, you
will also find talking points to help you write your letter. It is best
to put your message in your own words, since congressional staff often
ignore "form letters."

Because this issue is so urgent, please pass this message on to your
family and friends!

BACKGROUND

In 2004, FCNL asked for your help in urging Congress to oppose new
nuclear weapons. Your actions, and the leadership of Rep. David Hobson,
resulted in Congress eliminating the money for new nuclear weapons in
the final appropriations bill.

The Bush administration has renewed its effort to develop a
"bunker busting" nuclear bomb that would penetrate the ground
before exploding in order to destroy underground targets. The Energy
Department budget request includes $4 million to develop this new
nuclear bomb, also known as the "Robust Nuclear Earth
Penetrator." Read FCNL's fact sheet on these weapons at
http://capwiz.com/fconl/utr/1/HHRLEMWMYU/EOJWEMXRQE/ The administration
is also asking for $4.5 million in the Air Force budget for non-nuclear
tests that would evaluate the bunker buster's ability to penetrate into
the earth before exploding.

While the amount requested is small relative to the overall military
budget, spending any funds on the bunker buster keeps alive a program
that will cost hundreds of millions of dollars once it moves from
research to production. In addition to the cost to the taxpayer, the
program undermines U.S. efforts to convince other countries not to
develop nuclear weapons.

The administration is also asking for $9 million for a second nuclear
weapons program: the "Reliable Replacement Warhead." This
program, if continued beyond the planning stage, would also result in
hundreds of millions of dollars being spent to replace current warheads
and could lead to the resumption of nuclear testing.

Your efforts and the efforts of thousands of others to successfully
eliminate funds for the bunker buster in 2004 shows that the public
does not support these weapons. Now we need to mobilize again to slam
the door shut on new nuclear weapons.

_______________________________________

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________________________________________

Friends Committee on National Legislation
245 Second St. NE, Washington, DC 20002-5795
fcnl@fcnl.org * www.fcnl.org
phone: (202)547-6000 * toll-free: (800)630-1330

We seek a world free of war and the threat of war
We seek a society with equity and justice for all
We seek a community where every person's potential may be fulfilled
We seek an earth restored.
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