We can expect the countdown to continue over the coming months…
The board’s decision to move the clock less than a
full minute—something it has never before done—
reflects a simple reality: As this statement is
issued, Donald Trump has been the US president
only a matter of days. Many of his cabinet
nominations are not yet confirmed by the Senate
or installed in government, and he has had little
time to take official action.
Just the same, words matter, and President
Trump has had plenty to say over the last year.
Both his statements and his actions as presidentelect
have broken with historical precedent in
unsettling ways. He has made ill-considered
comments about expanding
the US nuclear arsenal. He has
shown a troubling propensity
to discount or outright
reject expert advice related
to international security,
including the conclusions of
intelligence experts. And his
nominees to head the Energy
Department and the Environmental Protection
Agency dispute the basics of climate science.
In short, even though he has just now taken office,
the president’s intemperate statements, lack of
openness to expert advice, and questionable
cabinet nominations have already made a bad
international security situation worse.