House Resolution 3 - Introduced

An Act 1urging Iowa’s congressional delegation to
2take all necessary measures to limit the authority
3of any President of the United States to order a
4preemptive launch of nuclear weapons.
5WHEREAS, there are over 15,000 nuclear weapons
6globally, most of which are possessed by the United
7States and Russia, and most of which are significantly
8more destructive than those dropped on Hiroshima and
9Nagasaki, Japan, during World War II;and
10WHEREAS, use and detonation of even a small number
11of nuclear weapons would have catastrophic human,
12environmental, and economic consequences globally,
13impacting everyone on the planet;and
14WHEREAS, the first use of nuclear weapons, including
15by the United States, against any other nuclear-armed
16nation could result in that nation’s immediate
17retaliation and invite the near-total destruction of
18the United States, including the state of Iowa;and
19WHEREAS, according to projections using blast radius
20and ambient population data, compiled by Assistant
21Professor Alex Wellerstein of the Stevens Institute of
22Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey, a single nuclear
23detonation in Chicago, Illinois, would cause upwards of
242,767,440 fatalities, 2,089,050 injuries, and affect
257,687,045 people within range of the detonation in the
26first 24 hours, including many Iowans;and
27WHEREAS, the citizens of Iowa deserve to live a life
28free from the threat of the reckless use of nuclear
-1-1weapons;and
2WHEREAS, development, maintenance, and storage of
3nuclear weapons drain precious taxpayer resources
4while failing to make Iowa and the nation safer
5from 21st century national security concerns such as
6cyberattacks, terrorism, and climate change;and
7WHEREAS, religious and military leaders, nuclear
8experts, and over 300 former heads of state from around
9the world have called for urgent action to eliminate
10all nuclear weapons globally;and
11WHEREAS, every President of the United States since
12President Ronald Reagan has worked to reduce global
13nuclear stockpiles in an effort to ultimately eliminate
14these weapons of mass destruction;and
15WHEREAS, according to a Congressional Budget
16Office report, the United States is expected to spend
17$1 trillion over the next 30 years to upgrade its
18nuclear arsenal, money that could be better spent to
19improve education, health care, job creation, and
20infrastructure;and
21WHEREAS, a President of the United States has the
22sole and unilateral power to launch a nuclear war
23without any consultation with congressional leaders
24and without any system of checks and balances to the
25exercise of this power;NOW THEREFORE,
   26BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
27That the Iowa House of Representatives urges Iowa’s
28congressional delegation to take all necessary steps
29to establish a system of checks and balances on the
30preemptive use of nuclear weapons to ensure that a
-2-1President of the Untied States will not have sole and
2unchecked authority to launch nuclear weapons, except
3in circumstances of retaliation for an attack on the
4United States.

-3-
js/rn