When he first took office, Barack Obama was a leader in the cause of reducing global nuclear arsenals. The president got off to an excellent start four years ago this month when he took the opportunity of a visit to Prague to announce his commitment to promoting "the...

Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel struck the right themes in his first major address, delivered today at the National Defense University. The question now is whether he can follow through with new policies.

The most important part of his speech came when Hagel expressed his understanding of the...

The House Appropriations Committee announced today that it wants to throw away billions of your tax dollars on weapons we don't need at prices we can't afford. How has it done this? By voting to exempt spending on nuclear weapons from the kinds of budget cuts that will...

There were many low moments in yesterday's disrespectful, intolerant inquisition of secretary of defense nominee Chuck Hagel by key Republican senators, but some of the most troubling involved the dismissive, ill-informed tone they took towards serious proposals for reducing global nuclear arsenals.

The criticisms centered around Hagel's support for

The debate over the wisdom of appointing former Nebraska Senator Chuck Hagel as the next secretary of defense is well under way. But rather than engaging in a blow-by-blow debate with Hagel's detractors, I'd like to look at the positive case for his appointment.

First and most importantly, we need...

Today's NRA press conference in response to the Newtown, Conn. school shooting was as bizarre as it was outrageous. The only breath of fresh air was when Medea Benjamin of Code Pink interrupted the proceedings with an anti-NRA sign, chanting that "the NRA has blood on...

Nothing grips Washington more than a good scandal, particularly when it involves sex, power and money. Last week's surprise resignation of C.I.A. Director David Petraeus has filled countless column inches and primetime minutes of television. The news of Gen. John Allen's involvement in the scandal is...

Yesterday's foreign policy speech by Mitt Romney was the worst of both worlds -- shallow rhetoric followed by a few ill-considered specifics.

On the rhetorical front, we learned that candidate Romney supports a "freer, more prosperous and more peaceful world"; believes in showing "resolve"; and would promote...

Most Americans aren't expecting much out of Washington these days, given the prevalence of partisan gridlock and the power of special interest money. But positive action is possible even in this climate, as evidenced by the recent decision to zero out funding for an unneeded, overpriced plutonium facility...

This week in Washington the halls of Congress have been flooded with talk about looming cuts to the Pentagon. With members of Congress floating plans to undo planned cuts (known in Congressional jargon as "sequestration") due to start in January, the lobbyists for America's weapons makers, the Aerospace Industries Association...

David Carr of the New York Times has rightly described the major party conventions as extended infomercials with little controversy to draw viewers away from reality TV or, this week, from dangerous weather. But there may be one exception. Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY) has pledged to use his...

There was a time when Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) was considered a maverick -- admittedly a much overused term, but certainly a fair description of a number of his key positions. The old John McCain had an independent streak, bucking his party on issues like campaign finance reform and fighting...

Representatives from four Pentagon contractors will march up Capitol Hill tomorrow to repeat a false but familiar refrain: additional reductions in Pentagon spending will wreck the economy and undermine our defenses. The leader of the pack will be Lockheed Martin CEO Robert Stevens, who is rapidly becoming the

How a World-Ending Weapon Disappeared From Our Lives, But Not Our World

Cross-posted with TomDispatch.com.

There was a time when nuclear weapons were a significant part of our national conversation.  Addressing the issue of potential atomic annihilation was once described by nuclear theorist...

If politics is a game of chess, Pentagon contractors have decided their workers are the pawns.

After a decade and a half of unprecedented growth, the Pentagon's budget is now set to grow only as fast as inflation and may even shrink ever so slightly. But to...

There have been so many bad proposals on defense issues thrown around in the House of Representatives lately it's hard to know where to start. Build a costly, unworkable missile defense system on the East Coast? Check. Try to undermine the President's ability to implement the New START...

Wednesday Lockheed Martin delivered the last of 187 F-22 Raptor fighter jets to the U.S. Air Force at a ceremony at the company's plant in Marietta, Georgia. The roll out -- attended by Air Force Chief of Staff Norton Schwartz and Sen. Johnny Isakson (R-GA) -- prompted Lockheed Martin executives...

House Budget Committee Chair Paul Ryan's new budget plan has received far more respect than it deserves. The myth of Ryan as the one who is willing to make the "tough choices" on the deficit continues to be perpetrated in many corners. But his plan doesn't hold up to scrutiny.

A Lesson in Republican Math

Cross-posted with TomDispatch.com

If you've been fretting about faltering math education and falling test scores here in the United States, you should be worried based on this campaign season of Republican math. When it comes to the American military,...

Just when you thought there were enough arms industry front groups pushing for higher Pentagon spending, there's a new kid on the block: the Coalition for a Common Defense. Leaders of the group include Frank Gaffney, whose Center for Security Policy has long enjoyed the support...