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Murphy: Trump Is 'So Unstable' That He Might Order 'Wildly Out of Step' Nuclear Weapons Strike

November 14, 2017

Sen. Chris Murphy (D., Conn.) expressed concern Tuesday that President Donald Trump is "so unstable" and "volatile" that he could order a nuclear strike that is "wildly out of step" with U.S. national security interests.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee held a hearing on the president's powers to launch a nuclear strike, and chairman Bob Corker (R., Tenn.) said it was not specifically about Trump.

However, Murphy sounded a different note.

"We are concerned that the president of the United States is so unstable, is so volatile, has a decision-making process that is so quixotic, that he might order a nuclear weapons strike that is wildly out of step with U.S. national security interests," Murphy said. "So let's just recognize the exceptional nature of this moment and the discussion that we're having today."

Corker, one of Trump's sharpest critics from his own party, said Congress needed to explore the "realities" of the nuclear strike system. He has previously questioned Trump's stability and competence in order to have a successful administration.

"Making the decision to go to war of any sort is a heavy responsibility for our nation’s elected leaders," Corker said. "And the decision to use nuclear weapons is the most consequential of all."