John Kerry: Approving the New START Treaty Keeps America Safe

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Dear John,
It's a bad treaty. Without even knowing what was in the treaty I had reservations simply because of Obama's involvement. After seeing him on the world and national stage for two years, I just don't trust him to negotiate on our behalf...not with something this serious. The reason for this mistrust? One word...POLAND. Bush had agreed with Poland to build a missile deterent on their soil. The Russians had been desperately trying to stop this ever since. In comes President Obama and he cancels it in his first year. Forget, for a moment, that he stabbed an ally in the back. What did he get from the russians for this? NOTHING.Didn't even try.
So, what's in the treaty? Well, it's an arms reduction treaty, and I'm all for arms reductions, John. But it appears that most of the reductions here will be on our side. The US will be dismatling 80 more warheads than the russians. Far worse, the US will have to dismantle 150 launching platforms. Launching platforms John...you know...silos, submarines, B2 Bombers and such. How many platforms will Putin have to dismantle? Well, err...NONE actually. In fact, the treaty allows them to build 130 new platforms! My problem with this, apart from the obvious, is that our launching platforms serve a duel pupose, whereas the russian platforms do not. Need to do war in the Middle East? Call in ten Tridents and twenty B2's and outfit them with cruise missiles and JDAMS, respectively. The russians can't do that John. This is something important that we're giving away.
John...I've never served in the military, so I have to defer to you and the vast military experience you've acquired during the four months you served in VietNAM. But I implore you, John...PLEASE take another look at this treaty before you speak on this again.

Tomolena of NY 11:27AM November 19, 2010

I don't think Russia is a threat, therefore I see no need to make additional agreements with them. I also don't think we should do anything that will limit our ability to defend ourselves. The USA is a strong country and it did not get there by giving up its ability to defend its self. We are not just defending ourselves from the Russians but the whole world. There are people in many nations that hate us just because we are Americans and as a whole successful. They want what we have and will destroy us if they can, not so much out of greed but jealousy.
I just can’t see any gain by throwing away any thing that is an asset to our defense. I live on a dead end street and know all my neighbors, most are family, but I still lock my doors day and night. I don’t know the people that live on the streets in the next neighborhood.

James A Register of NC 10:56AM October 23, 2010

I would trust six former secretaries of state, five former secretaries of defense, three former national security advisers, and seven former commanders of our nuclear forces before Senators Kyl or DeMint ANY day of the week.
This "modest treaty" (according to President Bush's National Security Advisor, Stephen Hadley) makes a lot of sense to me as well as to nearly every big name in the national security arena dating back 30-40 years.
See the treaty yourself at the State Department's website.

Jacob of GA 3:22PM August 23, 2010