The new START treaty with Russia inspires thinking about guiding foreign and defense policy. It will also inspire thoughts on what it is to live and serve in a Democracy, thoughts about clear thinking and integrity (but more on those later).
A raging debate in our legislature regards whether to approve new START (and allow the President to put that on his re-election resume). Evidently U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Rose Gottemueller has been working on this for several years and the three-star general responsible for missile defense says approval is a good idea... Presidents Obama and Medvedev signed the document in April.
Proposed ammendments address strategic ballistic missiles, number of nuclear warheads on both sides and evidently missile defense developments (although many, including President Obama, claim there are no restrictions on missile defense).
If the President signed it after extensive State Department work, Secretary Gates and the Joint Chiefs say it's a good idea, why wouldn't we sign it? Why weren't prominent legislators involved earlier in the process? We might also ask about the other nuclear capable countries (China, India, France, etc.): why just Russia? There are easy answers to these questions, but finding the right steps toward policy improvements aren't easy and finding consensus domestically is never easy... never mind forging consensus within an international community.
The Wikileaks developments, along with addressing cyber investigations, illustrate the importance of an international legal consensus where laws have long been outdated. The Administration absolutely MUST be able to fashion legislation, treaty language and consensus to be effective. In comparison to other challenges we face, new START should be easy...
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