Md. Poll: Americans Hesitant on Nuclear Weapons

Two-thirds of U.S. voters support legislation that requires the president to consult Congress and issue a declaration of war before using nuclear weapons, according to a poll released Monday.

Additionally, 80% of the 2,264 respondents surveyed by the Center for International and Security Studies at the University of Maryland favor extending the New START Treaty with Russia beyond its 2021 expiration date.

Negotiated by President Barack Obama and approved by the Senate in 2010, the treaty limits both sides to no more than 1,550 strategic offensively deployed nuclear weapons on no more than 700 deployed launchers. It also provides the U.S. with access to and information about Russia's nuclear arsenal.

Other findings include:

• 60%, including a majority of Republicans, favor phasing out the U.S.'s intercontinental ballistic missile force – now equipped with 400 nuclear warheads.
• 80% support the notion America needs to maintain a retaliatory nuclear capability powerful enough to keep other nations from finding it advantageous to attack the country.
• 41% said they thought the U.S. arsenal of 4,000 nuclear weapons was bigger than they expected.
• Two-thirds oppose withdrawing from the INF treaty, which limits the number of intermediate-range missiles that both sides can deploy.

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