From Budget Cuts to Dirty Bombs
By KENNETH N. LUONGO and KENNETH C. BRILL
NYT
Washington
THE House of Representatives has decided that countering the threat of nuclear terrorism no longer deserves America’s best efforts. Last week, it passed an energy and water budget bill that slashes the country’s defenses against nuclear terrorism — a threat both parties have long recognized as one of the most serious facing America. The Senate has the opportunity to reverse that mistake. If it does not, over a decade of nuclear security gains could evaporate.
This is the second time in six months that lawmakers have voted to cut funding for programs to prevent nuclear terrorism. Such programs have removed several tons of plutonium and highly enriched uranium from countries that might otherwise be unable to prevent those nuclear materials from falling into the hands of terrorists, made more than 1,000 buildings housing dangerous fissile and radioactive materials across the world more secure and strengthened security at many foreign ports and border crossings.
The House budget cuts come on top of the unprecedented 14 percent reductions made to those programs in the current federal budget. By comparison, from 2001 through 2010, Congress cut the budget by a cumulative total of slightly less than 1 percent.
The House eliminated a program that seeks to remove and secure 1,900 radioactive sources — sealed containers holding radioactive material — throughout the United States. Those radioactive sources are no longer in use, but they remain dangerous
(More here.)
NYT
Washington
THE House of Representatives has decided that countering the threat of nuclear terrorism no longer deserves America’s best efforts. Last week, it passed an energy and water budget bill that slashes the country’s defenses against nuclear terrorism — a threat both parties have long recognized as one of the most serious facing America. The Senate has the opportunity to reverse that mistake. If it does not, over a decade of nuclear security gains could evaporate.
This is the second time in six months that lawmakers have voted to cut funding for programs to prevent nuclear terrorism. Such programs have removed several tons of plutonium and highly enriched uranium from countries that might otherwise be unable to prevent those nuclear materials from falling into the hands of terrorists, made more than 1,000 buildings housing dangerous fissile and radioactive materials across the world more secure and strengthened security at many foreign ports and border crossings.
The House budget cuts come on top of the unprecedented 14 percent reductions made to those programs in the current federal budget. By comparison, from 2001 through 2010, Congress cut the budget by a cumulative total of slightly less than 1 percent.
The House eliminated a program that seeks to remove and secure 1,900 radioactive sources — sealed containers holding radioactive material — throughout the United States. Those radioactive sources are no longer in use, but they remain dangerous
(More here.)
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1 Comments:
Did you know that there was an amendment approved (via voice vote ... meaning that nobody was in the chamber at the time and a Republican controlled the gavel ... meaning that he only heard Republican voices) to prevent the implementation of the energy standards for light bulbs ?
Yep, potential Presidentress Bachmann won't have to be elected to let her Freedom of Light Bulb Choice legislation to become the law of the land.
This is sad, not only because the CFL and LED lights use less energy but there are a number of plants now producing these bulbs in the US ... and more scheduled to be opened. These are American jobs ... instead, the Republicans want consumers to have a choice to reward foreign producers for their inefficient products.
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