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February 5, 2008

New commitment — 02/06/08

Bush budget proposes money to speed destruction of weapons

Anonymous The Daily Independent Tue Feb 05, 2008, 02:59 PM EST

While recognizing that the budget President George W. Bush sent to Congress Monday is likely to be quite different than the spending plan Congress ultimately approves late this year, it is encouraging to note that the president is putting greater emphasis on destroying banned chemical weapons stored at the Blue Grass Army Depot near Richmond than he has at any time in his more than seven years as president.

In fact, after years of foot dragging, the administration seems committed to destroying the weapons before the 2017 deadline Congress last year set for the destruction of the weapons.

The budget the president sent to Congress proposes spending $398 million on destroying the weapons stored in Kentucky and in Pueblo, Colo. Both are planning to use neutralization rather than incineration to destroy the chemical weapons.

The Bush request is about $50 million more than the program received the past two years. Three years ago, the White House asked for only $31 million for the sites — a level that would have put operations in a holding pattern in Kentucky and Colorado.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has been a driving force in securing funding for the destruction of the weapons, pressuring Defense Secretary Robert Gates to increase spending for the neutralization sites. The Courier-Journal in Louisville reported Monday that Gates now is looking at destroying the weapons by as early as 2012. That would put the United States in compliance with an international treaty it signed pledging to destroy all stockpiled chemical weapons by 2012. After years of saying the 2012 date was impossible to meet, it is good to see that members of the Bush administration are now hinting that it may be feasible.

Blue Grass houses 523 tons of chemical weapons containing sarin, VX and mustard gas. The disposal site is currently under construction, and the destruction process is expected to take about two years once the buildings are finished.

While we’re certain the Democrats who control Congress will make many changes in the proposed budget, we hope the increased funding for the destruction of the banned weapons remains untouched. The proposal does more than any other previous budgets to speed the day the weapons finally are safely destroyed.

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Bush budget proposes money to speed destruction of weapons

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