Hey: We are edging closer to nuclear war!

Why is President Harry S. Truman on President Donald Trump’s mind this week? (If you didn’t notice, Trump invoked Truman twice in his U.N. speech yesterday.) Well, one reason may be that Truman is the only president to have authorized the use of nuclear weapons. Twice.

If the allusions to Truman left any doubt, Trump’s remarks on North Korea didn’t. “The United States has great strength and patience, but if it is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea. Rocket Man is on a suicide mission for himself and for his regime.”

Taking that along with Defense Secretary James Mattis’s remarks about tactical nuclear weapons earlier this week, brings me to the conclusion that we are edging closer to nuclear war. This is extreme deterrence — something the United States has not engaged in for many decades. And we have an amateur in the driver’s seat.

Photo credit: Los Alamos National Laboratory