If “in a fit of pique he decides to do something about Kim Jong-un, there’s actually very little to stop him. Nixon is reported to have gotten drunk and ordered a tactical nuclear strike, which was only averted by his national security adviser, Henry Kissinger. Bruce Blair, a former missile launch officer, warned last week about the president’s untrammeled power to start a nuclear war. “ Under the current nuclear strike protocol, [Trump] can consult any and all – or none – of his national security advisers, and no one can legally countermand his order,” he wrote. “If he gave the green light using his nuclear codes, a launch order the length of a tweet would be transmitted and carried out within a few minutes.

Source: The Guardian August 23, 2017 15:17 UTC