‘We’re not that stupid’

General to defy Trump if nuke order illegal

THE top US nuclear commander says he would resist President Donald Trump if he ordered an “illegal” launch of nuclear weapons.

Air Force General John Hyten, commander of the US Strategic Command, told an audience at the Halifax International Security Forum in Nova Scotia, Canada, that he had given a lot of thought to what he would say if he received such an order.

“I think some people think we’re stupid,” Gen Hyten said in response to a question about such a scenario. “We’re not stupid people. We think about these things a lot. When you have this responsibility, how do you not think about it?”

Gen Hyten, responsible for overseeing the US nuclear arsenal, detailed the process that would follow such a command.

“I provide advice to the president. He will tell me what to do,” he said in a video posted on the forum’s Facebook page.

“And if it’s illegal, guess what’s going to happen? I’m going to say, ‘Mr President, that’s illegal.’ And guess what he’s going to do? He’s going to say, ‘What would be legal?’

“We’ll come up with options of a mix of capabilities to respond to whatever the situation is. That’s the way it works. It’s not that complicated.”

Gen Hyten said running through scenarios of how to react in the event of an illegal order was standard practice.

“If you execute an unlawful order, you will go to jail. You could go to jail for the rest of your life.”

The Pentagon did not respond to a request for comment on Gen Hyten’s remarks.

They came after questions from Democrat and Republican senators about Mr Trump’s authority to wage war, use nuclear weapons and enter or end international agreements, amid concern that tensions over North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs could lead to hostilities.