Former Nuclear Launch Officers Warn Congress: Trump Should Not Have 'Absolute Power to Destroy Nations'

In an open letter to Congress on Thursday, 17 “former stewards of the launch keys” blasted President Donald Trump’s repeated threats to use nuclear weapons and urged lawmakers to take action to curtail his authority.

“The president has had ample opportunity to educate and humble himself to the grave responsibilities of his office. Instead, he consistently shows himself to be easily baited, stubborn in his ignorance of world politics and diplomacy, and quick to brandish nuclear threats.”
Click Here: Golf special—Letter to Congress

“The president has had ample opportunity to educate and humble himself to the grave responsibilities of his office,” the missileers’ letter states. “Instead, he consistently shows himself to be easily baited, stubborn in his ignorance of world politics and diplomacy, and quick to brandish nuclear threats.”

“Donald Trump is the last person who should possess the nuclear codes and the power to start a nuclear conflagration,” said Bruce Blair, a signatory to the letter (pdf) and co-founder of the Global Zero movement to eliminate nuclear weapons.

“As a former steward of the nuclear launch keys, I’ve learned about the stability, competence, and temperament it takes to hold such a responsibility,” Blair added, “and Donald Trump has shown us all he possesses none of those qualities.”

This warning from 17 former missileers comes amid alarming reports that the Trump administration is working to loosen constraints on nuclear weapons use in the Pentagon’s forthcoming Nuclear Posture Review, and considering a “bloody nose” strike against North Korea that experts worry could provoke a nuclear war.