On the recordDecember 16, 2010
I rise in strong support of the New START treaty. I want to start by reminding my colleagues that arms control treaties are an integral part of this country's modern history, premised on a shared belief that a world with fewer nuclear weapons is a safer world. Even as the Cold War raged, it was Ronald Reagan who committed America to the ultimate goal of eliminating these weapons from the face of the Earth. Those are his very words. This goal has animated numerous arms control agreements since then and it underpins the New START treaty, an agreement I believe we cannot fail to ratify. The dangers of nuclear proliferation have grown. As the Senator from Indiana knows well, because this has been a part of his life's work, the threat of global nuclear war has receded but the risk of nuclear attack has increased, enabled by the spread of nuclear technology and the danger of materials falling into the wrong hands. I believe we cannot be seen as a credible leader of a nation strongly committed to meeting our nonproliferation obligations unless we pursue further nuclear arms reductions ourselves.
