House Resolution 119 - Introduced HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 119 BY ANDERSON A Resolution urging Iowa’s congressional delegation to 1 take all necessary measures to limit the authority 2 of any President of the United States to order a 3 preemptive launch of nuclear weapons. 4 WHEREAS, there are over 15,000 nuclear weapons 5 globally, most of which are possessed by the United 6 States and Russia, and most of which are significantly 7 more destructive than those dropped on Hiroshima and 8 Nagasaki, Japan, during Word War II; and 9 WHEREAS, use and detonation of even a small number 10 of nuclear weapons would have catastrophic human, 11 environmental, and economic consequences globally, 12 impacting everyone on the planet; and 13 WHEREAS, the first use of nuclear weapons, including 14 by the United States, against any other nuclear-armed 15 nation could result in that nation’s immediate 16 retaliation and invite the near-total destruction of 17 the United States, including the state of Iowa; and 18 WHEREAS, according to projections using blast radius 19 and ambient population data, compiled by Assistant 20 Professor Alex Wellerstein of the Stevens Institute of 21 Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey, a single nuclear 22 detonation in Chicago, Illinois, would cause upwards of 23 2,767,440 fatalities, 2,089,050 injuries, and affect 24 7,687,045 people within range of the detonation in the 25 first 24 hours, including many Iowans; and 26 WHEREAS, the citizens of Iowa deserve to live a life 27 free from the threat of the reckless use of nuclear 28 -1- LSB 5419HH (5) 87 js/rj 1/ 3
H.R. 119 weapons; and 1 WHEREAS, development, maintenance, and storage of 2 nuclear weapons drain precious taxpayer resources 3 while failing to make Iowa and the nation safer 4 from 21st century national security concerns such as 5 cyberattacks, terrorism, and climate change; and 6 WHEREAS, religious and military leaders, nuclear 7 experts, and over 300 former heads of state from around 8 the world have called for urgent action to eliminate 9 all nuclear weapons globally; and 10 WHEREAS, every President of the United States since 11 President Ronald Reagan has worked to reduce global 12 nuclear stockpiles in an effort to ultimately eliminate 13 these weapons of mass destruction; and 14 WHEREAS, President Donald Trump has repeatedly 15 questioned why the United States cannot use nuclear 16 weapons and called for a major nuclear buildup, 17 which will incite other countries to do the same and 18 dramatically increase the risks of nuclear war; and 19 WHEREAS, according to a Congressional Budget 20 Office report, the United States is expected to spend 21 $1 trillion over the next 30 years to upgrade its 22 nuclear arsenal, money that could be better spent to 23 improve education, health care, job creation, and 24 infrastructure; and 25 WHEREAS, a President of the United States has the 26 sole and unilateral power to launch a nuclear war 27 without any consultation with congressional leaders 28 and without any system of checks and balances to the 29 exercise of this power; NOW THEREFORE, 30 -2- LSB 5419HH (5) 87 js/rj 2/ 3
H.R. 119 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, 1 That the Iowa House of Representatives urges Iowa’s 2 congressional delegation to take all necessary steps 3 to establish a system of checks and balances on the 4 preemptive use of nuclear weapons to ensure that a 5 President of the Untied States will not have sole and 6 unchecked authority to launch nuclear weapons, except 7 in circumstances of retaliation for an attack on the 8 United States. 9 -3- LSB 5419HH (5) 87 js/rj 3/ 3