False START?

Two senior Senators aren’t satisfied with the Obama Administration’s new nuclear weapons policy so are not readily endorsing the newly signed Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty with Russia that the President would like the Senate to ratify by year’s end. “I’m going to be real hesitant to vote for this treaty unless we have a commitment from the Administration that they’re prepared to modernize our nuclear stockpile,” said Sen. Joe Lieberman (D/I-Conn.) April 11 on “Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace.” In the newly issued nuclear posture review, the White House said there’d be no new nuclear weapons developed, and it placed tight constraints on refurbishing and repairing existing ones. It also removed ambiguity in US declaratory policy on the use of nukes. Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), told Chris Wallace that’s “troublesome.” “Ambiguity in foreign policy is sometimes very useful,” he said. (Fox News Sunday transcript)