US President Barack Obama has made history by using an autopen - an automatic signing machine - from an ocean away to sign a legislation into law hours before expiry. And stirred a new controversy. Originally, there had been a plan in place to have a White House aide hand-carry the legislation re-authorizing the Patriot Act, a controversial set of anti-terrorism and law enforcement measures passed in the wake of 9/11, to Europe, where Obama was for G8 talks. However, the vote process was delayed, which meant that the bill might not have reached Obama before the act expired at midnight Thursday. Read more »
"I admire the leading role Ploughshares Fund plays in catalyzing initiatives to prevent nuclear terrorism [and] stop the development of new nuclear weapons."
- Michael Douglas
"Ploughshares became a leader in its field by building a smart staff, establishing a distinguished board of advisors, and consulting widely and wisely.” - Paul Brest and Hal Harvey
"This is the moment when we have to move forward and all of us come together to reduce the number of nuclear weapons and eliminate them from the face of the earth."
- General Colin Powell
There are currently 17,300 nuclear weapons in the world across nine countries. Ploughshares Fund is working to reduce and eliminate these stockpiles.
"If you're looking to get a lot of efficacy for your dollar, I think Ploughshares Fund is a very effective way of making the world a safer place." - Brooks Walker, III
