Unfit

Why we have them and don't use them. August 03, 2016 "If we have them, why can't we use them?" That was Donald Trump's question about nuclear weapons to a foreign policy expert who was advising him, according to Joe Scarborough. This morning, Morning Joe revealed that a few months ago, Donald Trump asked a foreign policy expert, "why can't we use nuclear weapons?" on multiple instances during a one hour briefing. To which we're assuming said foreign policy expert asked whether or not Trump knows what a nuclear weapon is. You can watch the full clip here. This isn't the first time that we've been scared by Trump's recklessness when it comes to nuclear weapons. In March, Trump asked Chris Matthews why the United States make nuclear weapons if we don't use them. In a Republican presidential primary debate in December he said, "The power, the devastation is very important to me." He's hinted at using nuclear weapons to combat ISIS and suggested he's not a fan of the U.S.'s nonproliferation strategy, which has resulted in 14 countries giving up nuclear programs in the past 30 years. Asked about the possibility of using nuclear weapons in Europe, Trump said he's "not going to take it off the table." This video shows just how terrifying a Trump Presidency would be. And here is a bit of background on what Donald Trump could inherit, and what he's hinted he might do with that great power: The United States has 7,100 nuclear warheads in its total arsenal, with roughly 1,500 currently deployed in missiles, submarines, and bombers. Of these deployed warheads, roughly half are on hair-trigger alert. America's nuclear arsenal must be able to launch in as little as 10 minutes because a missile launched at the United States could hit targets on the East Coast in 10 to 15 minutes.Because of that, the President must be prepared to give the order in a matter of minutes. Tl;dr: Donald Trump is open to using nuclear weapons. Put his erratic temperament and unfamiliarity with the basic responsibilities of American security and global leadership at the top of the list of reasons he is "woefully unprepared" to be president. Share On Twitter WHAT'S TRENDING Suing and spewing. Today is the first anniversary of the Clean Power Plan—the Obama administration's landmark rule to cut dangerous carbon pollution from power plants. The plan is good news for everyone who likes breathing and a habitable earth. The bad news is, in response to the plan, a group of power producers and trade associations filed a suit against the EPA to try to stop the rule. A CAP analysis found that those power producers pumped out more than 1.2 billion metric tons of carbon pollution annually—that's one-fifth of the country's total carbon pollution. And they don't appear to be cleaning up their act: new data show that the five biggest power producers affiliated with the lawsuit emitted 52 million more tons of carbon in 2014 than in 2013. The Clean Power Plan case will be heard in the D.C. Circuit at the end of September—more details on that here. Collateral damage. Yesterday, Baltimore County police shot and killed 23-year-old Korryn Gaines in a standoff over outstanding traffic violations. Her five-year-old son was sitting in her lap when she was killed and was shot in the leg. Kids are often collateral damage during police encounters. ThinkProgress has more. Bills, bills, bills. Everyone has bills, which can easily pile up if one is between jobs. More than two-thirds of American households experience at least one year of unemployment during their working lives. Some of these families get a helping hand from unemployment insurance, which has helped tens of millions of workers pay their bills and connect to new work opportunities. But the system hasn't kept up with today's economy and needs to be updated. Hear how unemployment insurance helps real American families here. Being Moody. After more than a year of talk, there are finally numbers to compare Hillary Clinton's and Donald Trump's economic plans, courtesy of Moody's Analytics. We put together a quick look at how the economy would fare under each candidates' plans. Hint: Under one plan, the GDP is bigger, there are more jobs, and the average family has more money. Under the other? Not so much. Share On Twitter Progress Report | CAP Action Fund 1333 H ST NW | Washington, DC 20005 Contributions to Center for American Progress Action Fund are not tax deductible Donate | Manage Email Options | Privacy Policy | Unsubscribe This email was sent to ignoble.experiment@arconati.us. Did someone forward you this email? Sign up for the Progress Report here.