Trump Puts Iran's Destruction on Autopilot if He's Assassinated; But Someone Else Holds the Remote
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The calls for Trump's assassination came after the US attack reportedly killed thousands of people, including Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei since February 28. During Khamenei's funeral ceremonies from July 3 to July 9, several artists, political leaders and mourners called for Trump's assassination in retaliation for their losses.
By Pranjal Gupta
New Delhi, July 13: Amid growing calls for the assassination of US President Donald J Trump in Iran, the latter has reportedly ordered American forces to take down Iran “at levels they've never seen before” if anything happens to him. The two nations engaged in a serious exchange of missiles and drones over the weekend, once again putting the ongoing diplomatic efforts to end the war in jeopardy. Another issue that has drawn global attention is the Strait of Hormuz, over which both sides have asserted authority.
Trump may have made all the necessary preparations against Iran, even contemplating the worst-case scenario of his own death, but the execution of such a plan would not be automatic. If the US President is killed, the responsibility of the office would fall to JD Vance, Trump's Vice President.
Under the 25th Amendment and the Presidential Succession Act of 1947, power would be transferred to his successor, with Vance immediately becoming commander-in-chief and assuming the authority to order any retaliation.
It would then be Vance's call whether to execute the plan. “The US has, for a whole variety of reasons, never utilised a technical dead man's switch,” said Garrett M Graff, author of Raven Rock: The Story of the US Government's Secret Plan to Save Itself -- While the Rest of Us Die.
The United States does have extensive contingency plans to ensure continuity of government in the event of a nuclear attack or any other major catastrophe that wipes out most or all of Washington.
However, those plans do not provide for the immediate launch of retaliatory strikes upon the death of a president, even if that president had instructed the military to be prepared to do so.
The calls for Trump's death came after the US attack reportedly killed thousands of people, including Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei. During his funeral ceremonies from July 3 to July 9, several artists, political leaders and mourners called for Trump's assassination in retaliation for their losses.
Authority Over Hormuz
After the first phase of the day's fighting, it became clear that all nations would bear the consequences as long as the Strait of Hormuz remained under attack.
The US military's Central Command said its forces struck dozens of sites on Monday, including air defence systems, radar installations, missile and drone equipment, and small boats.
“The Strait of Hormuz is a vital maritime corridor for global trade,” Central Command said. “Iran does not control it.”
Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, a key power centre in the country's theocracy that controls its ballistic missile arsenal, strongly rejected the American claim.
“The Strait of Hormuz is our territory, and we will not allow a rogue and child-killing army from
the other side of the world to continue its illegal interference in it,” the Guard said.
Iran and the US are now nearly halfway through the 60-day period of an interim agreement that was intended to pave the way for talks aimed at bringing a permanent end to the war.
Instead, the situation has descended into a series of attacks around the strait and disputes over its future, raising fears among world leaders that the Iran war could once again spiral into a full-scale conflict.
“A return to full-scale hostilities would have catastrophic consequences,” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement.
(With Inputs from news agency AP)
