On the recordMay 14, 2015
With all due respect to my distinguished friends and colleagues, this should have been offered in committee where Members are more conversant with these issues. This is not the right way to get back at Putin and Russia, for the United States to commit a unilateral treaty breach. The gentleman has not even alleged that the Russians have violated the New START treaty. This is one treaty that they actually seem to be adhering to. Now, we may question the wisdom of that treaty, but the Senate voted to confirm it, to ratify the treaty. It would be a grave mistake for this lower body to challenge that judgment. The key point is this: Why blind the United States to counting the number of Russian nuclear weapons? Why defund those activities? Don't we want to know how many ICBMs are in their silos, how many nuclear armed submarines they have? Why don't we want to know what is really going on in Russia? I think the gentleman is mistaken by proposing this as an appropriate way to get back at Putin. We need more insight into what the Russians are doing, not less. This is a boomerang amendment; it attacks the wrong target. In fact, it comes back and hits us. I would urge the defeat of the Lamborn amendment. I yield back the balance of my time.
