National Command Authority (NCA) is a term that was used by the Department of Defense of the United States to refer to the ultimate source of lawful military orders.

The NCA was first alluded to in a 1960 Department of Defense document. It included at least the President of the United States as commander-in-chief and the Secretary of Defense. The term has no statutory or constitutional basis and was replaced in 2002 in favor of explicitly referring to the President and/or the Secretary of Defense.[1][2]

The term also refers to communications with the commanding officers of the Unified Combatant Commands to put U.S. forces into action.

Authorization of a nuclear or strategic attack

Only the President can direct the use of nuclear weapons by U.S. Armed Forces, through plans like OPLAN 8010-12. The President has unilateral authority as commander-in-chief to order that nuclear weapons be used for any reason at any time.[3][4][5][6]

See also

Notes and references

  1. ↑ Abrams, Herbert L. (1994). The President Has Been Shot: Confusion, Disability, & the 25th Amendment. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. p. 323. ISBN 0-8047-2325-7. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  2. ↑ Croddy, Eric A.; Wirtz, James J.; Larsen, Jeffrey A. (2005). Weapons of Mass Destruction: An Encyclopedia of Worldwide Policy, Technology, and History. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO. p. 66. ISBN 1-85109-490-3. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
  3. ↑ Blair, Bruce (June 11, 2016). "What Exactly Would It Mean to Have Trump's Finger on the Nuclear Button?". Politico Magazine. Retrieved 2019-06-30.
  4. ↑ Broad, William J.; Sanger, David E. (August 4, 2016). "Debate Over Trump's Fitness Raises Issue of Checks on Nuclear Power". The New York Times. p. A1. Retrieved October 2, 2016.
  5. ↑ Burns, Robert (2017-11-13). "Could anyone stop Trump from launching nukes? The answer: No". Associated Press. Retrieved 2019-06-30.
  6. ↑ Stanton, Zack (2017-11-14). "Don't Count on the Cabinet to Stop a Trump-Ordered Nuclear Strike". Politico Magazine. Retrieved 2019-06-30.
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