Trump continues to provoke North Korean leader Kim Jong-un over nuclear weapons
tweeting that he has a “much bigger & more powerful” nuclear button than North Korea.
Lillyanne Daigle, Chief Spokesperson for Beyond the Bomb, the new grassroots movement to stop nuclear war stated, “Once again, Trump’s reckless Twitter antics put the American public & the world in harm’s way. His antagonism of Kim Jong-un is sophomoric & incredibly dangerous. Trump can’t be trusted with a Twitter account, let alone nuclear weapons, yet he has thousands of them at his immediate disposal if he decides to back up his schoolyard bravado with force. Trump’s behavior reinforces time & again that we can no longer tolerate a system that gives any single person the sole authority to launch nuclear weapons & yet Republicans & Democrats alike seem content to sit on the sidelines while Trump edges us closer to the nuclear war. Members of Congress must not wait for nuclear missiles to hit the air before they act. Trump’s tweet underscores the urgency of reining in his unchecked power to single-handedly start nuclear war. That’s why we’re calling on Congress to get off the sidelines and support emergency measures like the ‘Restricting First Use of Nuclear Weapons Act.’ It’s clear that Donald Trump’s outrageous rhetoric can only escalate an already volatile crisis on the Korean peninsula and put us on the fast track to nuclear war. The window for Congress to prevent this nightmare scenario is rapidly shrinking. It’s time to put a stop to this madness.” Beyond the Bomb is building a much needed grassroots movement to move us back from the brink of nuclear war, dismantle the nuclear system & to secure a just future for all.
For More Info: beyondthebomb.org
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This latest flare-up between Trump and Kim puts us into very dangerous, very Freudian waters. It’s deeply alarming to see two self-aggrandizing men with something to prove face off with nuclear weapons. Worse, Trump’s tweet this morning suggests the president actually believes his destabilizing rhetoric is paying off. We have every reason to expect he will continue to brandish these nuclear threats — which means this crisis will only worsen.
ReplyDeleteNuclear war is not a game; we are flirting with unacceptably high risks that carry catastrophic consequences for the country and the world. No one can afford to not take Trump’s threats seriously — least of all the North Koreans, who could be provoked into striking first in order to preempt what they perceive as an imminent attack.
When Trump boasts of the big red button on his desk, it’s backed up by virtually limitless authority to make good on his threats. The nuclear briefcase follows him everywhere. At any moment he can pick up the phone and order a nuclear strike. Once he makes the call, there are zero safeguards we can count on to prevent that order from being executed. The system designed to carry it out is designed solely for deference and speed.
It’s difficult to overstate the consequences of such an act by the president. Even without a retaliatory strike by North Korea — a response that would almost certainly come, killing tens of thousands of people in the region, including deployed American forces — the death toll would be horrific and far-reaching.
Every effort must be made to avoid that nightmare scenario. President Trump must drop the escalatory bravado and immediately open a direct line of communication with Pyongyang, without preconditions. Unless we’re prepared to see mushroom clouds in Northeast Asia — and possibly here at home — we need to let the diplomats do their vital work. Only diplomacy can stop this conflict from going nuclear.