United States V. The Progressive - Legacy

Legacy

Morland's article was duly published in the November 1979 issue of The Progressive. A month later he published an errata in The Progressive with updates based on information that he had gathered during the trial from UCRL-4725, Chuck Hansen's letter and other sources. In Morland's opinion, the article contributed to a wave of anti-nuclear activism in the late 1970s and early 1980s that result in, amongst other things, the closure of the Rocky Flats Plant near Denver. Chuck Hansen went on to publish a book, U.S. Nuclear Weapons: The Secret History in 1988. This was subsequently expanded to a self-published five volume work entitled Swords of Armageddon.

Hearing into the case were held by Glenn's subcommittee, and by the House Subcommittee on Government Information and Individual Rights. The subcommittees looked into the implications of the decision with regards to nuclear proliferation. They also examined the doctrine of "classified at birth", but did not decide to amend the Atomic Energy Act to remove such provisions. The case remains a celebrated one, but one which, from a legal standpoint, "proved to be a victory for no one" due to the indecisive nature of its conclusion.