North Korea Now Making Missile Ready Nuclear Weapons

[Rev. Rye]

Well, I just looked it up and it seems there is in fact one potential spanner in the works keeping Trump from unilaterally launching a nuclear strike: The Pentagon.

I looked up an article on the proper legal procedure for a nuclear strike, and here's the crucial step that keeps the president from nuclear armageddon:

Before initiating military action, the president convenes a conference with military and civilian advisers in Washington and around the world to talk through options. In the White House, the call takes place in the Situation Room. If traveling, the president is patched in on a secure line. A key participant in the meeting: the Pentagon’s deputy director of operations, an officer in charge of the National Military Command Center, also known as the “war room.” This around-the-clock operations center is responsible for preparing and ultimately transmitting a launch order from the president. The head of all U.S. strategic nuclear forces at Strategic Command in Omaha would probably also be asked for a briefing on strike options.

This can take as long as the President wants, but if the missiles are already in the air, the process can take as few as 30 seconds. Of course, it seems if anyone stands in the way of nuclear war with Trump, it's the NMCC's Deputy Director of Operations, and The head of Strategic Command. I can't be sure of the NMCC guy's name, but I think it's Cpt. Alvin Holsey (not sure on it), and I can't find any information about his stance on the issue. It seems John Hyten, the head of Strategic Command, is convinced that any decent solution to the issue requires help from China. So there's still a little hope, even if it's not that much.