Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

In Ohio, Clinton Paints Scary Nuclear Scenario With Trump As President

wksu

President Obama will visit Capital University this afternoon to headline a get-out-the-vote rally in support of Democrat Hillary Clinton's presidential bid.  During a rally at Kent State University yesterday, Clinton abandoned her usual stump speech for an apocryphal vision of Republican rival Donald Trump and nuclear war. M.L.Schultze of member station WKSU in Kent reports.

Clinton usually focuses on jobs and the economy when she speaks in Ohio, promising to rebuild infrastructure and improve workforce training.

But it was clear even before she stepped to the podium at Kent State’s recreation center that this would be different. The man introducing her was Bruce Blair, an analyst whose books include “The Logic of Accidental Nuclear War” -- and one of two-dozen former nuclear launch officers who signed an open letter last month declaring Donald Trump should not be entrusted with the nation’s nuclear codes.

“I can tell you if I were back in the launch chair, I would have no faith in his judgment, none. And I would live in constant fear of his making a bad call.”

Clinton then spent most of her 45-minute speech underscoring what he started:

"When the president gives the order, that’s it. There’s no veto for Congress. No veto by the joint chiefs. The officers in the silos have no choice but to fire. And that can take as little as 4 minutes."

Clinton repeated her claim that Trump is temperamentally unfit to be entrusted with such a decision, pointing to interviews in which he’s seemed to embrace the use and proliferation of nuclear weapons

“To talk so casually, so cavalierly about mass annihilation is truly appalling.”

The message rattled Jordan Myers, a middle schooler from Stark County, who can’t vote but is convinced Hillary Clinton is the best hope for her generation.

“I feel like I could run the country better than him. It makes me shake.”

But Anthony Citraro, a Trump supporter and Kent State student, says Clinton comes with some high risks as well.

“Vladimir Putin is actually threatening war with the United States if Hillary gets in.  She’s also threatening war with Syria because you can’t have a no-fly zone without declaring war.”

Clinton began by talking about the FBI announcement that it’s reviewing one of her aide’s emails, saying she doesn’t know why the FBI broke with protocol and announced the review eight days before the election. She underscored that her concern was with the public announcement, not with the review itself.

The Statehouse News Bureau was founded in 1980 to provide educational, comprehensive coverage of legislation, elections, issues and other activities surrounding the Statehouse to Ohio's public radio and television stations. To this day, the Bureau remains the only broadcast outlet dedicated to in-depth coverage of state government news and topics of statewide interest. The Bureau is funded througheTech Ohio, and is managed by ideastream. The reporters at the Bureau follow the concerns of the citizens and voters of Ohio, as well as the actions of the Governor, the Ohio General Assembly, the Ohio Supreme Court, and other elected officials. We strive to cover statehouse news, government issues, Ohio politics, and concerns of business, culture and the arts with balance and fairness, and work to present diverse voices and points of view from the Statehouse and throughout Ohio. The three award-winning journalists at the bureau have more than 60 combined years of radio and television experience. They can be heard on National Public Radio and are regular contributors to Morning Edition, All Things Considered and Marketplace. Every weekday, the Statehouse News Bureau produces in-depth news reports forOhio's public radio stations. Those stories are also available on this website, either on the front page or in our archives. Weekly, the Statehouse News Bureau produces a television show from our studios in the Statehouse. The State of Ohio is an unique blend of news, interviews, talk and analysis, and is broadcast on Ohio's public television stations. The Statehouse News Bureau also produces special programming throughout the year, including the Governor's annual State of the State address to the Ohio General Assembly and a five-part year-end review.
Related Content