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wellerstein's profile
Alex Wellerstein
Alex Wellerstein
Alex Wellerstein
Verified account
@wellerstein

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Alex WellersteinVerified account

@wellerstein

Historian of science, secrecy, and nuclear weapons. Professor of STS at @FollowStevens. UC Berkeley alum with a Harvard PhD. NUKEMAP creator. Coder and web dev.

Hoboken, NJ / NYC
blog.nuclearsecrecy.com
Joined September 2011

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    1. Alex Wellerstein‏Verified account @wellerstein 31 May 2018
      • Report Tweet

      A research question I've been pondering for awhile: When, exactly, did the idea that the President — and only the President — was in charge of the decision to use nuclear weapons get turned into real policy? Answer seems to be September 1948, with NSC-30.pic.twitter.com/ppzBZwYOBF

      13 replies 114 retweets 189 likes
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    2. Ed Kaplan‏ @dropshot 31 May 2018
      • Report Tweet
      Replying to @wellerstein

      Also, the Atomic Energy Act of 1946 (McMahon Act) gave custody of nuclear weapons to the AEC, who did not share even basic information with the military. That also points to firm civilian control.

      1 reply 0 retweets 2 likes
    3. Alex Wellerstein‏Verified account @wellerstein 31 May 2018
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      Replying to @dropshot

      What is interesting here is that Atomic Energy Act discusses *custody* but not *use* of the weapons. Leaves the topic of what happens after POTUS authorizes weapons to be transferred from AEC to DOD totally untouched. (Which makes sense for 1946, clearly inadequate by 1948.)pic.twitter.com/xpmsYaDwM1

      1 reply 0 retweets 4 likes
    4. Ed Kaplan‏ @dropshot 31 May 2018
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      Replying to @wellerstein

      Good point, but I think the key to your question is the long debate over pre-delegation. It wasn’t until the early 50s that you get any sort of predelegated authority to use atomic weapons.

      1 reply 0 retweets 2 likes
      Alex Wellerstein‏Verified account @wellerstein 31 May 2018
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      Replying to @dropshot

      Predelegation is a separate issue, I think, since it is formally an extension of authority — it doesn't challenge notion of POTUS having ultimate authority (even if, in practice, this was awfully blurry).

      6:09 PM - 31 May 2018
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      • C. memex Sandra D 🌊
      1 reply 0 retweets 3 likes
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        2. Ed Kaplan‏ @dropshot 31 May 2018
          • Report Tweet
          Replying to @wellerstein

          I don’t think predelegation is really a separate issue. Truman resisted pressure for predelegation because he wanted to retain sole authority to use the atomic bomb.

          1 reply 0 retweets 1 like
        3. dimes-requester for carbon-capture‏ @p_feif80 31 May 2018
          • Report Tweet
          Replying to @dropshot @wellerstein

          I'm a rank amateur at this topic but I feel like Schlosser gave this pretty detailed treatment in his book? (I only had an audio version to hear while gardening, so I can't go back ;)

          1 reply 0 retweets 0 likes
        4. Alex Wellerstein‏Verified account @wellerstein 1 Jun 2018
          • Report Tweet
          Replying to @p_feif80 @dropshot

          He talks about many relevant things, but not the establishment of the President — and specifically the President — as the locus of this authority.

          0 replies 0 retweets 1 like
        5. End of conversation

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