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Authority to Launch Nuclear Forces
The U.S. President has sole authority to authorize the use of
U.S. nuclear weapons. This authority is inherent in his
constitutional role as Commander in Chief. The President
can seek advice from his senior military leaders; those
military leaders are then required to transmit and implement
the orders authorizing nuclear use if the President decides
to employ nuclear weapons. As General John Hyten stated
in a congressional confirmation hearing, his job as the
Commander of U.S. Strategic Command (STRATCOM)
would be to give advice, while the authority to order a
launch lies with the President.
General Mark Milley, then the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs
of Staff (CJCS), made a similar point in a memorandum he
provided to Congress in September 2021. He stated that he
is a part of the chain of communication, in his role as the
President's primary military advisor, but he is not in the
chain of command for authorizing a nuclear launch. He
also stated that, if the President ordered a launch, the CJCS
would participate in a decision conference to authenticate
the presidential orders and to ensure that the President was
fully informed about the implications of the launch.
The President, however, does not need the concurrence of
either his military leaders or the U.S. Congress to order the
launch of nuclear weapons. Neither the military nor
Congress can overrule these orders. As former
STRATCOM Commander General Robert Kehler has
written, members of the military are bound by the Uniform
Code of Military Justice to follow orders provided they are
legal and have come from competent authority. But
questions about the legality of the order-whether it is
consistent with the requirements, under the laws of armed
conflict (LOAC), for necessity, proportionality, and
distinction-are more likely to lead to consultations and
changes in the President's order than to a refusal by the
military to execute the order.
Nucdear Command and Contro
According to the Department of Defense's 2020 Nuclear
Matters Handbook, nuclear command and control (NC2)
refers to the exercise of [Presidential] authority and
direction, through established command lines, over U.S.
nuclear weapons operations. NC2 is enabled by a nuclear
command, control, and communications (NC3) architecture
that provides the President with the means to authorize the
use of nuclear weapons in a crisis and to prevent
unauthorized or accidental use.
NC3 collects information on threats to the United States,
communicates that information to the President, advises the
President on response options, communicates the
President's chosen response to the forces in the field, and
controls the targeting and application of those forces. (For
more information on elements of the U.S. NC3 system, see
CRS In Focus IF11697, Defense Primer: Nuclear
Command, Control, and Communications (NC3).)
Updated December 19, 2024
If the NC3 systems identified an attack or an anomalous
event, the President would participate in an emergency
communications conference with the Secretary of Defense,
the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and other military
leaders. They would offer the President details and an
assessment of the possible incoming attack and explain the
President's options. According to the DOD, depending on
the crisis situation, the President may consult with U.S.
allies during the decision-making process.
According to one summary of the process, the President
would then evaluate and respond to this information and
decide whether to authorize the use of U.S. nuclear
weapons. He would communicate his choices and provide
this authorization through the Emergency Satchel (or
nuclear football)-a suitcase carried by a military aid
who is always close to the President. The suitcase also
reportedly includes a book with prepared war plans for
certain targets. The President could choose from these
prepared plans or, time permitting, ask STRATCOM to
prepare an alternative.
If the President did choose to respond with a nuclear attack,
he would identify himself to military officials at the
Pentagon with codes unique to him. These codes are
reportedly recorded on an ID card, known as the biscuit,
that the President carries at all times. Once identified, he
would transmit the launch order to the Pentagon and
STRATCOM. STRATCOM would then implement the
order by preparing to launch the weapons needed for the
selected option.
Options for Nudear Use
Because this system was designed during the Cold War, it
was, as former director of the CIA General Michael Hayden
has stated, designed for speed and decisiveness. It's not
designed to debate the decision. Long-range missiles
attacking the United States from Russian territory could
reach U.S. territory in around 30 minutes; sea-based
systems deployed closer to U.S. shores might arrive in half
that time. If the United States wanted to retaliate before
U.S. weapons, or, more importantly, the U.S. command and
control system, were degraded by an attack, then the entire
process of identifying, assessing, communicating, deciding,
and launching would have to take place in less than that
amount of time. Given that some time would be needed for
mechanical or administrative steps, some analysts estimate
that the President would have less than 10 minutes to
absorb the information, review his options, and make his
decision.
During the Cold War, U.S. doctrine argued that, to deter a
Soviet attack, the United States would need to be able to
retaliate even if the Soviet Union launched a massive attack
with little warning. Hence, the United States planned for
scenarios where the Soviet Union deployed thousands of
nuclear warheads that could reach the United States. The](ViewImageLocal?handle=hein.crs/govertl0001&div=1&collection=&method=preview&ext=.png&size=3)
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