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Typically, the soccer ball would be handed over to another military assistant standing on or near the inauguration viewing booth while Biden was sworn in.
But on Wednesday, that exchange will play out a little differently as Trump is currently expected to leave Washington, DC for Florida ahead of Biden’s inauguration ceremony.
Nuclear football will likely travel with it, experts say, which means there will be at least two briefcases in different locations, which presents a unique challenge in ensuring that the transfer of authority goes smoothly.
While this process may play out slightly differently from years in the past, safeguards are in place to ensure a seamless transition of nuclear control from one president to another under any circumstance, according to Stephen Schwartz, a non-resident senior researcher. to the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists.
Discount of “ football ”
Contrary to popular belief, nuclear football does not contain a button or codes to automatically launch a nuclear weapon, but instead has the equipment and authorities that Trump would use to order a strike.
“There are at least three to four identical ‘balloons’: one follows the president, the other follows the vice president, and one is traditionally reserved for the designated survivor at events like inaugurations and speeches on the ‘State of the Union,’ according to Schwartz. .
“January 20, [the extra footballs] will be out of town somewhere with their delegates, just leaving [Vice President Mike] Pence’s briefcase unless the White House military office has prepared (or already has on hand) another backup for Biden, ”he told CNN.
In addition, the president is required to carry a plastic card called a “cookie” with him at all times. The cookie contains alphanumeric codes that are used to positively identify the president, who has sole legal authority to authorize a nuclear launch.
The reason is explicitly spelled out in the Constitution, which gives Trump full authority over America’s nuclear arsenal until Biden’s very second swearing-in on Wednesday at noon.
“Under the 20th Amendment – and in the absence of any invocation of the 25th Amendment that would make Mike Pence the interim president – Donald Trump is president until 11:59:59 am on January 20. sole legal authority to authorize the use of all or part of the US nuclear arsenal, ”said Schwartz.
“If a football assistant accompanies Trump on Air Force One in Florida, that assistant will withdraw from Trump’s presence at noon and return to Washington, DC, with the briefcase,” Schwartz added.
Transfer of authority
After that point, Trump will no longer have such authority and the nuclear codes he carries will be automatically deactivated, he added. During this time, Biden will automatically inherit the power to launch a nuclear strike at exactly the same time.
This means that if Trump attempted to order a 12:01 p.m. strike on Wednesday, the order would be considered illegal and the military commanders tasked with carrying out the launch would be forced to refuse.
The transition of this authority is ensured by the fact that the codes Trump would use to authenticate his identity as president will become invalid at that time. Meanwhile, Biden will likely receive his “cookie” on Wednesday morning when he, and possibly Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, are briefed on the process of launching a nuclear strike.
But their codes will not become active until Wednesday noon.
Earlier this month, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told House Democrats in a letter that she had spoken with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, to discuss Trump’s access to nuclear codes amid calls for the president to step down after a violent pro-Trump mob stormed the U.S. Capitol.
“This morning I spoke to Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mark Milley to discuss the precautions available to prevent an unstable president from launching military hostilities or accessing launch codes and ordering a nuclear strike “Pelosi wrote in a letter. “The situation of this unbalanced president could not be more dangerous, and we must do all we can to protect the American people from their unbalanced assault on our country and our democracy.”
After speaking with Milley, Pelosi told her caucus that she had obtained assurances that there were safeguards in place in the event that Trump wanted to launch a nuclear weapon, according to multiple sources during a caucus call. .
Senior military officials say that while the president has the exclusive power to launch nuclear weapons, he cannot do it alone.
If an adversary were to launch a missile at the United States, the president would immediately be on a classified communications network, receiving minute-by-minute information and recommendations on how to proceed.
There are safeguards against illegal attack orders, whether nuclear or conventional. To be legal, orders must have a legitimate aim, a clear military objective, and use proportional forces.
The general who recently ordered strategic weapons and is now number two in the Pentagon is adamant the military will not follow any president’s illegal orders.
“If it’s illegal, guess what’s going to happen? I’m going to say, ‘Mr. President, this is illegal. “And guess what he’s going to do? He’s going to say, ‘What would be legal?’ And we’ll come up with options, with a mix of capabilities to respond to whatever the situation is, and that’s it. that it works. It’s not that complicated, “said General John Hyten, former commander of US Strategic Command. 2017.
If a president persists in pushing illegal orders, a military commander would have no choice but to resign.
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