Overview

Making the decision to go to war of any sort is a heavy responsibility for our Nation's elected leaders, and the decision to use nuclear weapons is the most consequential of all. The Atomic Energy Act of 1946 and the subsequent practices recognize that the use of nuclear weapons must be subject to political control. This is why no general or admiral or Defense Secretary has the authority to order the use of nuclear weapons. Only the President, the elected political leader of the United States, has this authority. The nuclear arms race between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War dramatically elevated the risk of nuclear conflict. As the Soviets developed massive numbers of nuclear weapons and the systems to deliver them to the United States, we planned for the unthinkable: How to get our missiles in the air within those few minutes before their warheads could hit us and possibly destroy our ability to respond. In that kind of scenario, there is no time for debate. Having such forces at the ready has been successful in deterring such an attack. And for that, we are grateful. But this process means the President has the sole authority to give that order, whether we are responding to a nuclear attack or not. Once that order is given and verified, there is no way to revoke it.This compilation includes a reproduction of the 2019 Worldwide Threat Assessment of the U.S. Intelligence Community.Three witnesses provided valuable insight during their testimony at this hearing. The first witness was General Bob Kehler, commander of the United States Strategic Command from 2011 to 2013. The second witness is Dr. Peter Feaver, professor of political science at Duke University, and the third witness is Brian McKeon, the Acting Under Secretary of Defense for Policy during the Obama administration and once a staff member on this committee.U.S. nuclear weapons prevent the coercive or actual use of these weapons against us and our allies, which is their primary purpose, constrain the scope and scale of conflict, compel adversaries to ponder the consequences of their actions before they act, and obviate the need for additional allies to acquire their own. No other weapon can replace the deterrent value of nuclear weapons. And the ability to command and control our nuclear forces under all conditions of crisis and conflict remains central to the credibility of the deterrent.

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