Going Nuclear with William Hartung

In this inaugural episode of "Always at War," hosts Courtney Rawlings and Alex Jordan explore America's continued investment in nuclear weapons despite their catastrophic potential. 

With the help of Quincy Institute Senior Research Fellow and military-industrial complex expert Bill Hartung, Courtney and Alex examine how defense contractors and lobbyists influence policy decisions to maintain a $315 billion nuclear program that many experts consider unnecessary and dangerous, and investigates who benefits from these massive investments.

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Explore how American politicians consistently prioritize "the strongest, most lethal fighting force" while receiving millions from the defense sector: https://www.opensecrets.org/2024-presidential-race/kamala-harris/industries?id=N00036915&src=c

Learn how American financial institutions hold $327 billion in investments in nuclear weapons producers, with U.S. spending exceeding all other nuclear powers combined: https://responsiblestatecraft.org/nuclear-weapons-budget/

Discover how the Sentinel ICBM program's costs have ballooned 81% since 2020 while its lobbyists donated to 92 senators and 413 representatives to maintain support: https://quincyinst.org/research/inside-the-icbm-lobby-special-interests-or-the-public-interest/

See how former Senator Jon Kyl lobbied for Northrop Grumman while advocating for expanded nuclear weapons programs that directly benefited his client: https://www.thenation.com/article/world/the-washington-establishment-isnt-going-to-protect-us-from-nuclear-war/

Understand how the misleading term "modernization" masks a $1.7 trillion program to completely rebuild the US nuclear weapons complex: https://inkstickmedia.com/when-it-comes-to-nuclear-weapons-tell-it-like-it-is/

Find out why military spending creates fewer jobs than almost any other government investment, with alternative expenditures creating up to 250% more jobs: https://responsiblestatecraft.org/nuclear-weapon-lobbying/

Learn why ICBMs create a dangerous "use it or lose it" pressure on presidents who have only minutes to decide whether to launch if warned of an incoming attack: https://jacobin.com/2024/06/us-nuclear-icbm-weapons-safety

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Why is America seemingly always at war? Join the Quincy Institute’s Courtney Rawlings and Alex Jordan as they expose the monied interests, outdated ideologies, and entrenched powers that have driven the U.S. to wage nearly 400 wars and interventions.

Each episode, they’ll be joined by journalists, advocates, and experts to uncover who profits from America’s endless conflicts, and to imagine how we can build a better, more peaceful U.S. foreign policy.

Learn more about the Quincy Institute: quincyinst.org

Contact the show: alwaysatwar@quincyinst.org

Show art by Justin Hantz

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