Trump asks why US can't use nukes: MSNBC

The doctrine of “Pre-Emptive War” or a “Pre-Emptive Nuclear Strike” pretty much died with “Dr. Strangelove” and the Presidency of George W. Bush.

You are woefully uniformed about our nuclear weapons policy. The US has never pledged no first-use for many reasons and many of them have nothing to do with a pre-emptive military strike.

For example, whether it was the Fulda Gap or our current troops in South Korea, the US has always held the option when confronted with overwhelming conventional force of using nuclear weapons to protect our forces. We developed tactical nuclear weapons for that purpose.

There are other scenarios on the strategic level. Right now, there are rumblings that Obama will make some sort of no first use pledge. It would be a disaster and weaken our nuclear deterrent.

China, India, and North Korea have taken the NFU pledge. The remaining nuclear powers, including the United Kingdom, France, Israel, Pakistan, Russia, and the United States have pledged to only use nuclear weapons defensively but still reserve the right to strike first in case of conflict. Israel has not officially admitted to having nuclear weapons, but you can bet that they would use them to protect its existence if confronted with overwhelming conventional force.

Why do you think the movie Dr. Strangelove was made? To get the same silly, uninformed response made by you. It was an anti-military message with ridiculous stereotypes. It was a black comedy, not reality. The real issue is nuclear proliferation and the possibility of a non-state actors acquiring them.

How dense are you? If US intelligence were to learn unequivocally that the Chinese were going to launch a nuclear attack against the US within hours, do you really think a President would not act to protect this country?

If the North Koreans launched a massive attack against the South including the 28,000 US tripwire troops located there, do you think a President would allow them to be overrun without the use of tactical nuclear weapons?

There is a reason that Russia, France, the UK, Pakistan, and Israel have not signed on to a NFU pledge. China, India, and NK have. Of course, pledges are meaningless because there is no way to enforce them.

You are living in a fantasy world. What military and foreign policy experience have you had?

Put down the pipe I said. The Chinese are not going to launch a nuclear attack.

“Our” country is fixing to elect a Neo-Marxist totalitarian crook as President. The Norks could invade the South and I seriously doubt the American people would approve of conventional weapons much less “tactical” nukes in defense of S Korea for God’s sake.

This is a Brave New World. The USA is going to collapse of its own stupidity long before any fantasy nuclear exchange takes place.

Put down the pipe I said. The Chinese are not going to launch a nuclear attack.

LOL. Do we have your guarantee? The issue is whether the US should pledge NFU or not. Our current policy is that we will not sign on to NFU. NATO has the same position. I have provided the reasons why we have not. It weakens our deterrent.

The Norks could invade the South and I seriously doubt the American people would approve of conventional weapons much less “tactical” nukes in defense of S Korea for God’s sake.

We have a treaty that says we will just as we have Article 5 in NATO. The American people have already approved of these treaties thru their elected representatives. The President and Congress would not conduct a national referendum to approve of our honoring our treaty obligations.

You seem to lack an understanding of how our national security apparatus works. The President makes the final decision in most instances, but it is after meeting with his national security advisors (NSC), the military, and the intelligence community. The idea that Trump could order a nuclear attack against anyone he disagrees with is pure, contrived nonsense. Hillary and the compliant MSM perpetuate the caricature of Trump as unstable and dangerous--too dangerous to have the nuclear codes. It is preposterous. There are too many checks and balances to prevent any one person from launching a nuclear attack.

This is a Brave New World. The USA is going to collapse of its own stupidity long before any fantasy nuclear exchange takes place.

Again, you are missing the issue. We are discussing NFU and current US policy. Right now, the US has not precluded the first use of nuclear weapons under certain conditions. The United States has refused to adopt a no-first-use policy, saying that it "reserves the right to use" nuclear weapons first in the case of conflict. That is the reality, not a "fantasy."

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