Help us push back in 2014

Greetings from the Center for Arms Control & Non-Proliferation:

Our Center has worked for 33 years to promote nuclear arms control, effective diplomacy to enhance our national security, and an end to the spread of weapons of mass destruction.

For each of those 33 years, we’ve encountered opposition from those who prefer to maintain a nuclear arsenal far larger than we need, spend money on unneeded weapons systems, and employ force rather than diplomacy to address global threats.

That’s why a key part of the Center’s mission is to push back against these advocates and to make the case for an approach to national security that is relevant to the 21^st century rather than the Cold War. There's only one day left - will you make a tax-deductible contribution before the end of the year?

Here are three ways we spoke truth to power in 2013:

• Urging the administration to cut wasteful nuclear weapons spending: The Center leaned on the Pentagon, right up to its #2 official, for refusing to acknowledge the unsustainably high price tag of our excessively large nuclear weapons program and infrastructure.
• Admonishing hawkish Senators to support diplomacy with Iran: When Members of Congress pushed for tougher punitive sanctions on Iran, the Center responded by explaining that diplomacy, rather than further sanctions, was key to preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons and avoiding a disastrous war.
• Telling President Obama it’s time to end the war in Afghanistan: As the Obama administration considered extending our troop presence in Afghanistan for as long as another decade, we pushed back, explaining why it’s time to bring the troops home.

To enable more of this in 2014, please consider a tax-deductible contribution before midnight tomorrow.

Many thanks for supporting our efforts to inform the debate about more sensible national security policies and programs. We couldn’t do it without your generosity.

Happy holidays,

Lt. Gen. (USA, Ret.) Robert Gard, Jr.
Chairman & Senior Military Fellow
Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation