New legislation would require President Trump to get approval from Congress before starting a nuclear war.
Quakers believe there is that of God in every person – that we must value the lives of people living in this country and in all others. This simple morality compels us to support the Restricting First Use of Nuclear Weapons Act of 2017, introduced by Sen. Ed Markey (MA) and Rep. Ted Lieu (CA) (S. 200 and H.R. 669).
The bill would ensure the president cannot begin a nuclear war without an act of Congress. It protects against President Trump and future presidents unilaterally initiating a nuclear war.
To launch nuclear warheads first would likely trigger the warheads aimed at the United States, with catastrophic consequences. First use of nuclear weapons is an abhorrent devaluation of the lives and humanity of people at home and abroad. One person should not be allowed to single handedly initiate such an attack, especially not someone who has explicitly promised to be unpredictable in his use of nuclear weapons.
The Unites States must never begin a nuclear war, and Congress must be empowered to keep the president from starting a nuclear war on his or her own.
