The clock is ticking

| 3:00 pm EST January 27, 2023
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Three years ago, I wrote about how the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moved its Doomsday Clock ahead 20 seconds, bringing us to a record 100 seconds to midnight (or doomsday). Before this, when Donald Trump first took office, the Clock was set at the more comfortable three-minute mark. This week, another update on the Clock paints an even grimmer picture, putting us at a new record of 90 seconds to midnight.

While Trump wasn’t solely to blame for how the clock moved over his term, there’s no question his words and action played a large part in leading the United States and the world toward disaster. Indeed, the Bulletin chided Trump for the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement, calling it a “dire mistake,” along with his failed negotiations with North Korea. Within just a week of Trump’s inauguration, the Clock jumped 30 seconds in the scary direction due to the wrecking ball’s “disturbing comments” on the campaign trail about nuclear proliferation and climate change denial.

President Joe Biden has now been in office for two years. Over that time, the Clock did not begin retreating from midnight, and it now has inched even closer, in what the Bulletin is calling a “time of unprecedented danger.” This sort of development can make certain people think, “So, Biden’s no better than Trump!” or even “We were safer under Trump!”

Such conclusions may appear somewhat logical from a quick read of the headlines, but they are ridiculous. As the leader of the free world, the President of the United States is in a unique position to influence the Clock in one direction or another. Unfortunately, wielding power in a destructive and disruptive way is far more likely to move the clock. By contrast, striving to solve the many serious problems facing the nation and the world, particularly in today’s political climate, requires care and commitment as well as cooperation and patience.

In announcing the unprecedented 90-second mark, the Bulletin did not blame Biden but explained the move “largely (though not exclusively) because of the mounting dangers of the war in Ukraine.” Last year, the Bulletin noted the Biden administration’s “more moderate and predictable approach to leadership” along with the “return of science and evidence” to policymaking, not to mention control of the nuclear codes returning to competent hands. The Bulletin also pointed out that “U.S. leadership alone was not enough to reverse negative international security trends that had been long in developing.”

Anyone who thinks Biden and Trump are the same when it comes to bringing the world closer to doomsday are missing the point. Trump’s ruthless and reckless actions have hurled us toward the abyss, while Biden’s careful and caring actions have prevented us from spiraling further out of control. The question to ask is how close to midnight would we be right now had Trump remained in power, as the pandemic raged and Putin began his offensive in Ukraine? While Trump relished chaos and conflict, Biden has been working hard to save us from the brink.