Vice President Joe Biden dismisses Sen. Jon Kyl's latest complaints about possibly having to work around Christmas.

BTW: Did anyone else notice that even Pat Buchanan thinks the Senate should ratify the New START treaty?

Sen. Jon Kyl of Arizona is holding up the treaty until he gets more assurances that the administration will do the tests and upgrades necessary to maintain the reliability of U.S. nuclear weapons. He should receive those assurances.

Maintaining the credibility of the U.S. deterrent is a vital national interest. But does this justify holding the treaty hostage?

Without a treaty, we lose our right and our ways and means to verify that Russia is carrying out the terms of arms treaties already agreed upon.

How does leaving the United States in the dark about who is doing what with Moscow’s nuclear weapons enhance our security?

Not only are our allies behind this treaty — as are Republican secretaries of state and defense and ex-national security advisers — so, too, is the Pentagon.

If the joint chiefs say this treaty is good for America, what do the reluctant Republican senators believe is wrong with it? Have they considered the impact of the treaty’s defeat on Russia?