Obama seeks money for nuclear weapons

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ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – President Barack Obama is seeking increased funding for nuclear weapons research and security programs next year, even as his administration promotes nonproliferation and has pledged to reduce the world's stockpile of nuclear arms.

The administration on Monday asked Congress for more than $7 billion for activities related to nuclear weapons in the budget of the National Nuclear Security Administration, an increase of $624 million from the 2010 fiscal year.

NNSA Administrator Thomas D'Agostino defended putting more money into the programs, saying the U.S. needs the best nuclear weapons facilities, scientists, technicians and engineers as it moves toward eventual disarmament.

"This budget is implementing the president's nuclear vision," he said.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100202/ap_on_re_us/us_nuclear_lab_budgets_1

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Obama announces new nuclear disarmament talks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQx45ro_PT8


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z05ViEL83sM

Obama’s no-nukes vision
http://thehill.com/opinion/op-ed/61005-obamas-no-nukes-vision
President Obama quickly distinguished himself from his modern-day predecessors as he recently led the unanimous adoption of a resolution by member nations of the United Nations Security Council that reaffirmed the U.N.’s goal of a world without nuclear weapons.

It was an important step forward in addressing nuclear dangers to present and future generations. Throughout his campaign and now as the president, he has called on his counterparts to muster the courage and take action that could result in a world without the deadly threat of nuclear weapons. Earlier this year while in Prague, the president spoke of “America’s commitment to seek the peace and security of a world without nuclear weapons.” He emphasized America’s “moral responsibility to act” by leading this effort.

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http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2010/02/01/obama-seeks-money-nuclear-weapons-work/

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- President Barack Obama is seeking increased funding for nuclear weapons research and security next year, even as his administration has pledged to reduce the world's stockpile of nuclear arms.

The administration on Monday asked Congress for more than $7 billion for activities related to nuclear weapons in the budget of the National Nuclear Security Administration, an increase of $624 million from the 2010 fiscal year.

NNSA Administrator Thomas D'Agostino said more money is needed because the U.S. needs the best nuclear weapons facilities, scientists and engineers, even as it moves toward eventual disarmament.

"This budget is implementing the president's nuclear vision," he said.

NNSA wants a 4.7 percent overall increase for infrastructure to more than $2.3 billion, including money for major long-term projects to replace aging buildings at New Mexico's Los Alamos National Laboratory and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee.

Greg Mello, director of the nuclear watchdog Los Alamos Study Group, said budgets have increased in recent years, but the nation "hasn't seen any increase in weapons activities like this since the early years of Ronald Reagan."

He called the budget "a complete surrender to Senate Republicans," who have argued that stockpile reductions must be accompanied by a modernized nuclear weapons complex.

Los Alamos' budget includes about $225 million for design work for a research building to replace a 58-year-old lab where scientists analyze samples of plutonium and other radioactive materials.

Watchdog groups contend the new building would position the U.S. to build more nuclear weapons, but Los Alamos lab officials have said the facility would replace existing capabilities.

NNSA's budget request includes more than $2 billion for stockpile support activities, a 25 percent increase, and $1.6 billion for science, technology and engineering, an increase of more than 10 percent.

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-o2gzNVab9w

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-o2gzNVab9w

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Pentagon’s Black Budget Tops $56 Billion

The Defense Department just released its king-sized, $708 billion budget for the next fiscal year. Much of the proposed spending is fairly detailed — noting exactly how many helicopters the Pentagon plans to buy and how many troops it plans on playing. But about $56 billion goes simply to “classified programs,” or to projects known only by their code names, like “Chalk Eagle” and “Link Plumeria.” That’s the Pentagon’s black budget.

Cobbling together this round figure for the military’s hush-hush projects is easier than it seems. The Pentagon’s separate ledgers for operations, research and procurement all contain line items for “classified programs.” Add those to the nonsensically-named programs, and you’ve got yourself an estimate for the Pentagon’s secretive efforts.

Last year, that budget grew to more than $50 billion – ”the largest-ever sum,” according to Aviation Week’s Bill Sweetman, a longtime black-budget seer. A few more billion were added for wartime operations, for a total of $54 billion. This year’total would be $2 billion higher, a 3.7 percent increase.

Not all of the Pentagon’s secret projects got a budget boost, however. Funds for the Cobra Judy missile-watching radar system were cut nearly in half, from $61 million to $36.5 million. Similar, money for the Navy’s Link Evergreen project was cut to $41 million, from $123 million.


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