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June 19, 2013, 6:02 pm
By
Carlo Muñoz and Jeremy Herb
The Topline: President Obama on Wednesday called for reducing the U.S. nuclear arsenal by as much as a third, a proposal that was not well received by Republicans and some Democrats. In a speech at Berlin’s Brandenburg Gate Wednesday, the president said that seeking "peace with justice means pursuing the security of a world without nuclear weapons." “We may no longer live in fear of global annihilation, but so long as nuclear weapons exist, we are not truly safe,” Obama said. He announced plans for a 2016 conference in the United States with the aim of better securing nuclear materials across the globe. He also called for a treaty to end the production of fissile material. Obama’s comments were met with a flurry of statements from Republicans criticizing the proposal, and some Democrats also expressed their displeasure. Republican lawmakers warned that Obama’s plans amounted to unilateral disarmament and would make it more difficult to negotiate with Russia. Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) called the move “misguided and dangerous.”
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June 19, 2013, 5:38 pm
By
Carlo Muñoz
Top U.S. military planners on Wednesday reaffirmed the Pentagon's commitment to maintaining a viable nuclear arsenal to take out potential threats from land, at sea and in the air.
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June 19, 2013, 5:19 pm
By
Jeremy Herb
Democratic senator says the forced-feedings complicate "difficult situation" regarding indefinite detentions.
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June 19, 2013, 3:23 pm
By
Carlo Muñoz
The White House condemned Wednesday's brutal terrorist attack against the United Nations headquarters in West Africa, calling the unprovoked strike a "despicable" act. "The United States condemns in the strongest terms al-Shabab’s despicable attack on the United Nations in Somalia," National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said in a statement.
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June 19, 2013, 2:28 pm
By
Carlo Muñoz
The second-ranking Senate Democrat pressed military brass on the rising costs of the fighter jet.
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June 19, 2013, 1:19 pm
By
Megan R. Wilson
Private-equity giant Blackstone nabbed retired Gen. Wesley Clark, the former NATO supreme allied commander in Europe, to head the board of directors for its new energy development firm.
Fisterra Energy launched in January, spearheaded by industry veteran Pedro Barriuso and fueled by investor funds that are managed by Blackstone.
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June 19, 2013, 12:45 pm
By
Jeremy Herb
A Republican lawmaker is asking the Government
Accountability Office (GAO) to conduct a new study examining the government’s
classification systems. Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) requested the new GAO study
after the recent leaks of the National Security Agency’s (NSA) phone and Internet surveillance programs by
Edward Snowden, a former NSA contractor. “With access to classified information contingent on the
issuance of security clearances, overclassification stands to dangerously
expand access to material that should ordinarily be limited,” Hunter wrote to
the GAO.
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June 19, 2013, 11:28 am
By
Jeremy Herb
Republicans were furious at President Obama’s announcement Wednesday
that he will ask Congress to reduce the U.S. nuclear stockpile by a third. GOP lawmakers slammed Obama’s comments in his speech at
Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, warning that the president’s proposal amounted to
unilateral disarmament and would make it more difficult to negotiate with
Russia. Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) called the move “misguided
and dangerous.”
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June 19, 2013, 10:21 am
By
Justin Sink
Obama said despite "enormous mistrust," Karzai saw the need for "political reconciliation."
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June 19, 2013, 7:20 am
By
Meghashyam Mali
Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Wednesday suspended negotiations on a long-term security deal with the United States to protest the Obama administration’s decision to launch peace talks with the Taliban.
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