Florida Times-Union: Sunday Editorial: Checks needed before President Trump can use nuclear first strike

The powers of the imperial presidency have been building long before Trump took office.

But the dangers are more apparent than ever.

Concerns about Trump's level of discernment have been appearing through a flood of leaks in Washington.

Trump's open talk about war with North Korea raises serious concerns that should not be ignored.

And the critics have been widespread; they aren't just the usual and predictable opponents from the left.

Even loyal Trump backers like conservative columnist Ann Coulter have rounded on him. And one of Trump's toughest critics has been The Wall Street Journal editorial page, the bible of the right.

Trump's undisciplined tweets have gone far beyond the usual political posturing. The Washington Post fact checker has documented 1,318 false or misleading claims over 263 days. Even half that number would be troubling — and particularly so when the culpable person is the leader of the free world.

And that has led an avid Trump devotee like Newt Gingrich to admit there is "the big Trump" (the bold historic figure who became president against all odds) — and "the little Trump" (someone Gingrich calls "stupid").

Trump attacks friends and foes alike.

Take Sen. Bob Corker, an early Trump supporter, a conservative Tennessee Republican and the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Recently, Corker courageously commented about Trump on the record to The New York Times. Examples:

• "I know for a fact that every single day in the White House it's a situation of trying to contain him," Corker said. "At least today, we've got some very good people there, and they have been able to push back against his worst instincts."

• "But the volatility is, to anyone who has been around, is to a degree alarming. But again, I don't wish him harm. He's got people around him that have been able to keep him, generally speaking, in the middle of the road. The tweets, especially as it relates to foreign policy issues, I know have been very damaging to us, O.K."

• "And, you know, he doesn't realize that, you know, that we could be heading toward World War III with the kinds of comments that he's making."

• "A lot of people think that there is some kind of ‘good cop-bad cop' act underway, but that's just not true."

Trump was elected to shake up Washington, and it is apparent that being an agent of chaos is his management style. His promises that he could be presidential if he wanted to be cannot be believed.

The conservative Washington Examiner asked, "Is Trump the same guy who won in November?"

Quoting The Wall Street Journal's editorials:

• "The president is a Party of One for whom personal loyalty is the only test."

• Regarding those in the Trump administration and on Capitol Hill, "What they fear and want to contain are the president's lack of discipline, short fuse, narcissism and habit of treating even foreign heads of state as if they are Rose O'Donnell."

The Wall Street Journal calls on Congress and members of Trump's Cabinet to act on their own in order to avoid being held hostage "to Trump's impulsive turns."

That's an incredible statement, that the adults in Washington must work around the president, but it's a fact. And that's a scary scenario when nuclear war may be in play with North Korea.

Two Democratic members of Congress — Rep. Ted Lieu of California, a colonel in the Air Force reserves, and Sen. Edward Markey of Massachusetts — have submitted a bill that would require a Declaration of War before a first nuclear strike by the U.S.

This is a historic issue.

In fact, Congress has only issued formal declarations of war five times in history: The War of 1812, the Mexican-American War, the Spanish-American War, World War I and World War II.

Congress has issued less formal approvals of war, including the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution that supported wider combat in Vietnam.

The War Powers Resolution of 1973 arising from the Vietnam War requires that the president report to Congress within 48 hours of introducing armed forces to hostilities and remove forces within 60 days if Congress-does not approve.

This basically gives the president 48 hours of unlimited power. And it's presumed that the president must have the power to act in self-defense for the nation.

The War Powers Resolution was used in various military decisions from Grenada under President Ronald Reagan to the first Gulf War under President George H.W. Bush and the Iraq War under President George W. Bush.

But it would only take about 15 minutes to go through the procedures of firing nuclear weapons.

The Congressional Research Service confirmed that the president "does not need the concurrence of either his military advisers or the U.S. Congress" to use nuclear weapons.

And following Trump's comments to the United Nations, concerns were raised in Congress. Trump told the U.N. that "if (the U.S.) is forced to defend itself or its allies, we will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea."

Corker told NPR that Congress is looking into the broad question of the involvement of Congress in a war involving the U.S.

The bill requiring a Declaration of War before a nuclear first strike deserves support because it should apply to every president, not just Trump.

The president still would have plenty of power to defend the U.S., but there would be restraint on a nuclear first strike.

Congress needs to assert its authority based on the checks and balances that are built into the Constitution.

Those checks are needed more than ever.