FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: (11/21/08)

Peace Movement Raises Concerns About Possible Obama Defense Secretary

CONTACT: Reva Patwardhan (office) 510-849-2272, ext. 112 (Cell) 510-681-7075
rpatwardhan-at-peaceactionwest-dot-org

BERKELEY, CA – The Obama transition team is considering Robert Gates as their Secretary of Defense, and as the idea gains traction, peace groups grow more concerned.

One of the most salient arguments in favor of a Gates appointment has been its significance as a gesture of bipartisanship. Jon Rainwater, Peace Action West's Executive Director, responds saying that, " Obama's commitment to bi-partisanship and a desire to have diverse viewpoints in your cabinet is refreshing. But as smart and soft-spoken as Gates is, Gates is by no means a moderate or a realist."

In addition, Rainwater argued that the most important signal to send right now is that Obama will deliver on his promise of change on foreign policy. "No one argues that Gates has not been an improvement over Rumsfeld. But we are hoping that President-Elect Obama sets the bar higher than that, and chooses a team that will get behind his agenda for change, to project a clear new vision on foreign policy. Keeping Gates on as Defense Secretary would send a very different, and disappointing, message to the world."

Rainwater continued, stating that, "Gates has been an outspoken opponent to Obama's withdrawal plan. He famously accused congressional opponents of the Bush Iraq strategy of 'emboldening the enemy'. It takes a vivid imagination to picture Gates implementing and successfully defending a timeline for troop withdrawal."

Mr. Rainwater also expressed concerns regarding Mr. Gates's views on nuclear weapons. "At a time when former cold warriors like Henry Kissinger and George Shultz are calling for steps towards a nuclear weapons free world, Gates has been calling for a new generation of nuclear weapons."

"What's remarkable about this is that for the last five years, there has been enough bipartisan opposition to new nuclear weapons programs that Congress has consistently refused to fund them," stated Rainwater. "There is a powerful and emerging consensus -- that has included Senator Obama -- that the US will best serve its security interests by leading the world towards multilateral reductions in the world's nuclear arsenals. Gates is instead advocating to essentially continue the Bush doctrine on nuclear weapons, which thus far has only proven its potential for revving up a new arms race."

In a clear effort to influence the next administration, Gates has spent a lot of political capital this fall promoting an aggressive nuclear weapons policy. In October, Gates released a policy paper co-authored with Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman that resurrected arguments in favor of a new generation of nuclear weapons. Gates also gave a bellicose speech spurning the vision of a nuclear weapons free world that Obama has embraced. Gates said: "Try as we might, and hope as we will, the power of nuclear weapons and their strategic impact is a genie that cannot be put back in the bottle – at least for a very long time."

Rainwater argues: "Gates's approach to nuclear weapons is based on painting a bleak, fearful picture of threats from China, Russia, Iran and North Korea. The solution Gates promotes is a revamped U.S. nuclear arsenal, and he fails to articulate creative arms control solutions to the nuclear weapons problem."

Peace Action West has been campaigning to urge the President-Elect to appoint a Secretary of Defense who supports his agenda for change. In a letter to supporters, Rainwater underscored the need to act quickly, saying, "We can be sure that right now the Obama team is under pressure to dial back plans to withdraw from Iraq."

Supporters are asked to send an email using this webform: http://act.peaceactionwest.org/peaceactionwest/issues/alert/?alertid=12212581&PROCESS=Take+Action

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Peace Action West is the region's largest and most enduring lobby for a just foreign policy and smarter security. Through targeted grassroots pressure on members of Congress, media campaigns and coalition work, Peace Action West promotes a foreign policy rooted in support for human rights and democracy, eliminating the threat posed by nuclear weapons and promotion of international cooperation. The organization has close to 50,000 supporters throughout the west. More information on the organization and its campaigns is available at http://www.peaceactionwest.org.