 On the night of Tuesday, October 5th, 2017, Trump called the White House press corps, who had been dismissed for the day, back to the state dining room. The president was holding court with top-ranking military officers and their families, enjoying the pageantry and adoration of his office. Military salutes, pomp and circumstance, a motorcade at your beck and call, and a briefcase full of nuclear codes that could destroy the world.