Trump's 'fire and fury' comment was an echo of Harry Truman's address after he dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima

President Harry S. Truman tells Americans about the atomic bomb in 1945.

(Image credit: CSPAN)

published 9 August 2017

President Trump's alarming warning to North Korea on Tuesday stunned many Americans, with Sen. John McCain observing that "the great leaders I've seen don't threaten unless they're ready to act and I'm not sure President Trump is ready to act." While it isn't clear how pre-planned Trump's threat was — that North Korea would draw "fire and fury like the world has never seen" if it continued to intimidate the U.S. — the president's words were nevertheless a clear and chilling echo of former President Harry S. Truman's speech after dropping a nuclear bomb on Hiroshima in 1945, The New York Times reports:

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At the commemoration of the second bomb drop three days later, on Nagasaki, Mayor Tomihisa Taue warned Wednesday that "the nuclear threat will not end as long as nations continue to claim that nuclear weapons are essential for their national security," USA Today reports.

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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.