Congressional Pressure Necessary to #defund the ICBM Modernization Program and #movethemoney to Peace Programs!
Published on June, 45 2021
Graphics from beyondthebomb.org, used with permission.
By Ellen Thomas
DISARM Committee Co-chair
June 2021
Please join DISARM’s June 2021 Disarm Legislative Action Campaign to move forward two significant pieces of weapons-cutting legislation that are stuck in committees of the 117th Congress. We are asking for volunteers to engage in a sustained lobbying campaign, through phone calls to members of the House of Representatives (see Strategy & Call To Action below).
Each bill seeks to defund nuclear weapons and move the money to human needs. Rep. Ro Khanna introduced HR-2227 to take immediate action to halt the modernization of Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs), and Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton introduced HR-2850, a bill designed to abolish nuclear weapons worldwide, and convert the arms industries to instead provide for human needs.
Strategy & Call To Action
There are 45 representatives who sit on either or both of the Progressive Caucus and the Defense Spending Reduction Caucus. These representatives are likely allies of HR-2227 and HR-2850.
There are two immediate actions for as many WILPF members as possible to take:
- Familiarize yourself with HR-2227 and HR-2850.
- Commit to making up to 6-7 phone calls a day for the next two weeks to a set of representatives who may be outside your congressional district.
The intended outcome is that the selected 45 representatives will receive multiple calls asking for their co-sponsorship of HR-2227 and HR-2850 – and thanking them for any support already provided. The many calls should result in putting the legislation at the top of their “call reports,” which are regularly delivered to representatives. We expect this attention to lead to a buildup of formal co-sponsors.
To help you, here is a call script and a detailed phone list. Contact disarmchair@wilpfus.org to sign up for this action and receive updates and materials.
Why Is This Special Effort So Important?
In May, Disarm committee members attended a webinar facilitated by Peace Action related to HR-2227 – #defund the ICBM. Legislative staffers for the bill’s sponsors were guests at the webinar. They recommended a targeted, intensive phone calling campaign to bring constant attention to the legislation. More co-sponsors can lead to quick action from the committees where the legislation now sits.
Our government spends 60% of its discretionary budget on costly weapons and endless wars. Cutting back excessive military spending, as with this bill and with HR-2850, is an important step to #movethemoney!
Additional Important Congressional Action
Please also take national action: Call your House representative and ask her or him to join the new Defense Spending Reduction Caucus that Representatives Barbara Lee (D-CA) and Mark Pocan (D-WI) created in July 2020. Find your Representative’s Congressional office contact information by entering your zip code here. You can also find your Representative and Senators by calling the Capitol Switchboard at 202-224-3121.
The Defense Spending Reduction Caucus will recommend cuts to the National Defense Authorization Act that the House Armed Services Committee will present to the full House for debate and a vote later this spring, we’re told. President Biden’s proposed $753 billion fiscal year 2022 defense budget is even larger than Trump’s most recent budget and includes upgrades of nuclear weapons and delivery systems (missiles, bombers, and F-35 jets), drones, and submarines.
You can also endorse the Move the Money Campaign pledge as an individual.
The Two Bills to Move the Money
HR-2850 - Nuclear Weapons Abolition and Economic and Energy Conversion Act (click here for current co-sponsors)
Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton announced the re-introduction of her "Nuclear Weapons Abolition and Economic and Energy Conversion Act” on April 24, 2021. She has introduced a version of this bill every year since 1994. The bill is a comprehensive approach to the redirection of all funds used for nuclear weapons programs to converting the weapons industries toward providing for human needs and carbon free, nuclear free energy. A major update for this version of the bill includes an option to ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). Additional background information, including the history of the bill, can be found on the Proposition One website. In addition to making phone calls, a letter to your representative can be sent (here).
HR-2227 - Investing in Cures Before Missiles Act (click here for current co-sponsors)
This House bill has the same text as its Senate companion bill, S-982. The intent of this legislation is to halt modernization of the ICBMs that make up the land leg of the nuclear triad.
The formal name of this modernization activity is the ”Ground Based Strategic Deterrent” (GBSD) program. The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) projects the cost of this modernization at over $264B. The Federation of American Scientists has evaluated and made recommendations for alternatives to GBSD. A first step to disarmament of this leg of the triad is to defund the GBSD program and transfer the billions of dollars to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention for universal coronavirus vaccine and research into emerging infectious diseases.
Thank you for taking these actions. To learn more about the DISARM Committee, contact DisarmChair@wilpfus.org.
