Pete Domenici: “They are incredible. America wants them safe. In 1968, the then President of the United States entered into the…”

“They are incredible. America wants them safe. In 1968, the then President of the United States entered into the following understanding, and the criteria are summarized as follows: One, in the event of a detonation, initiated at any one point in the high-explosive system---- That is not the bomb---- the probability of achieving nuclear yield of greater than 4 pounds of TNT shall not exceed 1 in a million. Not that it will cause a bomb. Just 4 pounds of TNT, a chance of 1 in a million. The probability of premature nuclear detonation of a bomb due to bomb component malfunction shall not exceed one in a billion in any environment the bomb is designed to experience, or one in a million for accident when the weapon is exposed to an environment outside its designed parameters. Quantitative criteria are also used to certify weapon reliability. Now, Senator Bumpers, the answer to your question is that the scientists who developed them, the scientists who designed them, the scientists who supervised their building and their destruction are now asked to try a whole new approach and come up with a science-based stockpile stewardship initiative. And they are not going to be absolutely certain that it is going to work. But we have to give them what is necessary for them to say we are moving toward making sure that it will work.”