There is NO ‘nuclear button’ on Trump’s desk: Here’s what would actually happen if the president decides to launch a nuclear attack
Donald Trump has boasted he has a bigger ‘nuclear button’ than Kim Jong Un
Instead, Trump has access to 20kg (45lb) briefcase, known as the ‘football’
Inside is an instructional guide for carrying out a nuclear strike, alongside a list of locations that can be targeted by the US arsenal of 900 nuclear weapons
HARRY PETTIT
DAILYMAIL.COM
3 January 2018
Donald Trump recently boasted that he has a bigger and more powerful ‘nuclear button’ than North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
The truth, however, is the president does not have a nuclear button on his desk at all.
Instead, Trump has access to 20kg (45lb) briefcase, known as the ‘football’, that is kept close to the president at all times.
Inside is an guide for carrying out a nuclear strike, alongside a list of locations that can be targeted by the country’s arsenal of 900 nuclear weapons.
Trump’s most recent nuclear threats came after Kim’s new year address, in which he cautioned: ‘The US should know that the button for nuclear weapons is on my table.’
Trump mocked the claims, tweeting on Tuesday: ‘Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!’
If the president were to order a strike, he would first need to verify his identify with codes unique to him.
The codes are recorded on a card known as the ‘biscuit’ which is carried by the president at all times.
New codes are provided each day by the National Security Agency.
The biscuit has several fake codes, so the president has to memorise the location of the correct codes on the card.
He would then access the ‘football’ briefcase containing secure communications equipment as well as instructions on how to verify his identity and transmit the command.
The launch order would be transmitted to the Pentagon and Strategic Command via a radio transceiver within ‘the football’.
The secretary of Defense is told about the order, but does not have the power to veto it.
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