Only Kamala Harris can be trusted with US nuclear arsenal: Lawrence

Kamala Harris declined to invite Vice President-elect J.D. Vance and his family to the vice president's residence before Inauguration Day. — Image credit: Reuters

The 2024 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Nihon Hidankyo, a Japanese peace advocacy organization led by survivors of the atomic blasts in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Since its founding after World War II, Nihon Hidankyo has lobbied for a world without any nuclear weapons, a goal known as “nuclear zero” or “global zero” among international affairs professionals.

The Nobel Committee stated that Nihon Hidankyo’s eyewitness testimonies and first-hand stories of survival have been invaluable in preventing any use of nuclear weapons since 1945, although a handful of nations still maintain a total of approximately 12,100 nuclear weapons around the globe.

Watch the above video as Straight Arrow News contributor Adrienne Lawrence reflects on the fragility of the no-use nuclear weapons regime and argues that Kamala Harris is the only U.S. presidential candidate Americans can trust with the world’s most powerful nuclear arsenal.

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The following is an excerpt from the above video:

The U.S. needs a leader who will avoid nuclear war, rather than one who threatens to use nuclear weapons to address petty grievances and to posture on social media. Even if Trump hadn’t made those remarks though, 45 is not fit to even possess the nuclear codes. In a world where multiple nations possess nuclear arsenals and geopolitical instability is awry, the likelihood of misunderstandings, accidents or miscalculations could lead to an all-out nuclear war. We must elect someone who is wise, has tack, and has the desire to de-escalate conflict, someone who invests in diplomacy, will seek arms control agreements and other conflict resolution mechanisms, instead of threatening to push a button that will blow us all back into the Stone Age.

There is no question that nations can build a more stable and secure world that does not depend on the threat of nuclear annihilation, but to achieve that end, we the people must elect a leader who believes in getting us there. As the voters head to the ballot box, they have to make a decision, one that they have to realize profoundly shapes the future of not just our country, but also the stability and the security of the world. And one of the most critical responsibilities that a president has over their command is over the U.S. nuclear arsenal, a power that carries the potential for immense destruction and global catastrophe.

Given the highly volatile geopolitical environment going on, voters have to prioritize electing someone who’s going to resolve international conflicts. We’re talking diplomacy, strategy, building togetherness, rather than looking to use bombs. And I can tell you that that leader is Kamala Harris. She believes humanity is essential. And I can tell you that humanity cannot afford for Trump’s ego to have a bad day.

I think we can all agree that the Nobel Peace Prize is a high honor. This year, the 2024 prize is going to a collective of Japanese atomic bomb survivors for their efforts to achieve a world free of nuclear weapons. And interestingly enough, the Norwegian Nobel Committee has awarded the Peace Prize for nuclear Non Proliferation efforts at least once a decade since JFK was in office, although that hasn’t stopped the United States, Russia and a handful of other countries from stockpiling nearly 13,000 weapons. The committee’s efforts still speak to the need to avoid nuclear war. The decision to use nuclear weapons is one that no leader should ever have to make. But in our country, the United States, the decision rests with the President. The consequences of electing a president who is inclined to use nuclear options could be catastrophic, not only for the US, but for the entire world. That’s something that voters must keep in mind when they head to the ballot box on november 5, with the geopolitical conflict at an all time high. This is not the time to be a single issue voter. As extreme as it sounds, it is imperative to remember that avoiding nuclear war is likely on the ballot. Nuclear weapons are not only morally and ethically indefensible, their use also brings unimaginable humanitarian, environmental and geopolitical consequences, mass death, nuclear winter, international catastrophe. You think that Hiroshima was bad, and it was, but today’s weapons are not your grandparents’ nukes, as the Union of Concerned Scientists explain, the warheads on just one US nuclear armed submarine have seven times the destructive power of all the bombs dropped during World War Two, including the two atomic bombs dropped on Japan and the United States, usually has 10s of those warheads on each submarine at sea. Donald Trump should not be in control of that level of power. The man is shown to be irresponsible with that level of access. For example, in addition to withdrawing from the US, deal with Iran for nuclear weapons in 2018 Trump doesn’t take nuclear weapons seriously. You remember in August of 2017 amid escalating tension between North Korea about its missile program, well, Trump called Kim Jong, un little rocket man and tweeted that Trump’s button was bigger, suggesting that the US could destroy North Korea if necessary, knowing that North Korea possesses nuclear weapons, the US needs a leader who will avoid nuclear war, rather than one who threatens to use nuclear weapons to address petty grievances and to posture on social media, even if Trump hadn’t made those remarks, though 45 is not fit to even possess the nuclear codes. In a world where multiple nations possess nuclear arsenals and geopolitical instability is awry, the likelihood of misunderstandings, accidents or miscalculations could lead to an all out nuclear war, we must elect someone who is wise has tacked and has the desire to de escalate conflict, someone who invests in diplomacy will seek arms control agreements and other conflict resolution mechanisms, instead of threatening to push a button that will blow us all back into the stone age, there is no question that nations can build a more stable and secure world that does not depend on the threat of nuclear annihilation, but to achieve that end, we the people, must elect a leader who believes in getting us there. As the voters head to the ballot box, they have to make a decision, one that they have to realize profoundly shapes the future of not just our country, but also the stability and the security of the world. And one of the most critical responsibilities that a president has over their command is over the US nuclear arsenal, a power that carries the potential for immense destruction and global catastrophe. Given that highly volatile geopolitical environment going on, voters have to prioritize electing someone who’s going to resolve international conflicts. We’re talking diplomacy strategy, building togetherness, rather than looking to use bombs. And I can tell you that that leader is Kamala Harris. She believes humanity is essential. And I can tell you that humanity cannot afford for Trump’s ego to have a bad day. You.