After speaking to Milley on Friday, Pelosi told her caucus that she has received assurances that safeguards are in place if Trump wants to launch a nuclear weapon, according to a multiple sources on a caucus call.
“Speaker Pelosi initiated a call with the Chairman. He answered his questions regarding the nuclear control authority process,” Colonel Dave Butler said in a statement.
Since then, calls from Democrats for the President to step down after the Capitol uprising have escalated and it is possible that the Democratic-led House could move to vote to impel Trump for a second time as early as next week.
Pelosi’s letter again raises questions about what it will take to launch a nuclear weapon and whether military leaders can reject an order from Trump.
Only the President of the United States has the authority to order the use of nuclear weapons.
But contrary to popular belief, there is no button in “nuclear football,” which will always accompany a President. Instead are the equipment and decision papers that Trump would use to justify his orders and launch a strike.
The decision to launch a strike calls on the President to work with armed supporters who have the supplies he needs to order an attack, as well as workers at all levels , from senior executives all the way down to service members working in the missile silos.
Current and former defense officials have also insisted that the military will not blindly follow orders from the President, noting that there are layers of checks and balances. who intends to defend against a President illegally ordering a nuclear strike. “
But the fact is that the only basis for applying for an order is just if it is illegal, immoral or immoral. And there is widespread belief among military commanders that they must resign if they cannot fulfill a legal order.
Some nuclear experts argue that there is little that Milley could do to prevent Trump from launching a nuclear deal, as he and other top national security officials are not technically in the leadership chain when it comes to such conclusions.
“Any ‘defense’ built to effectively prevent Trump from using the same authority for a nuclear launch might be a ‘coup’ with the usual definition,” she said. according to Vipin Narang, a nuclear policy expert and professor at MIT.
“The approach to nuclear launch authority gives POTUS the same authority to launch nuclear weapons,” he told CNN, adding that, by design, it is not a legal obligation to launch a nuclear weapon. ‘President consults or obtains approval from one of several people, including the vice president, national security adviser, secretary of defense and joint chiefs of staff.
“There are none, contrary to popular belief, in the nuclear launch control chain. So there are any ‘safeguards’ that could effectively prevent POTUS from The use of a single authority to launch nuclear weapons is either illegal or malicious, “Narang said. “As long as Trump is in office, he retains the legal authority to launch some or all of America ‘s nuclear weapons until 12:01 pm on Jan. 20, or until it is abolished. career. “
The four top transport directors – Pelosi, Mitch McConnell, Chuck Schumer and Kevin McCarthy – also spoke Thursday night with Milley and Acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller about the federal response to the Capitol building breach, according to an expert source. It is not clear whether the issue of nuclear codes came up in that conversation.
In a letter sent to Democrats Friday, Pelosi shared the news of the death of U.S. Capitol police officer Brian Sicknick after the crash, and said she hopes to hear from Pence “as soon as possible” about the possibility. Trump resigned during the 25th Amendment.
“Nearly fifty years ago, after years of inciting their false President, a Republican in Congress finally told President Nixon that it was time to go. today, after the President ‘s dangerous and seditious actions, a Republican in Congress must follow that example and call on Trump to resign his office – immediately.If the President does not resign abruptly and willingly , Congress will go ahead with what we have done, “Pelosi wrote.
Pelosi also said the attack on the Capitol had “a major traumatic impact on Members and transport staff,” and said a letter would be received from the Attendant Physician’s Office and Employee Support Office regarding available facilities. with members for responding trauma after the siege.
This story was updated with further improvements on Friday.
CNN’s Daniella Diaz, Manu Raju, Dana Bash and Barbara Starr contributed to this report.