What National Secrets Will Trump Have Access To?

Election Day has come and gone. Donald Trump is now the president-elect — which, as I'm sure you know, means that come Jan. 20, 2017, he will be the new leader of our country. As they say, with great power comes great responsibility. But what does that mean? If you're wondering what exactly is going to be entrusted to the reality star and businessman, you aren't alone. This brings me to my ultimate curiosity: What national secrets will Trump learn as president?

Covert and clandestine operations have often been alluded to in TV and film. For instance, if you've caught an episode of the new show, Designated Survivor , you'd know that officials bring the wide-eyed insta-president into a secret room (really, an arena) within the White House where the heads of the CIA and top government officials meet to monitor the world — and its more nefarious workings — at large. There's another scene where they show the president being given the path to nuclear access, as well as being given a secret phone that can work anywhere on earth. Now, is that close to reality? Well, sort of.

For instance, back in May, The Daily Beast reported that "spies" were "worried" about Trump becoming the Republican presidential nominee, because he would "be able to receive classified U.S. intelligence briefings, which could include some of the same sensitive information that President Obama is given in the Oval Office." This means he already does know quite a bit, just from getting nominated.

In fact, the article went on to state, "Immediately after the election, the president-elect would likely be privy to the same information the current commander-in-chief sees. His or her staff will begin moving into presidential transition offices that have been outfitted with secure rooms and computers." If you look at it this way, Trump will likely learn more government secrets than you could probably even imagine.

And when it comes to the much-talked about scenario of Trump getting the nuclear access codes, well, that will come to fruition, too. In Bloomberg article from September, the site reported, "The commander-in-chief’s power is clear: He or she has sole authority to use nuclear weapons." Then, Bloomberg elaborated on how while they leader consults others, the timeframe can be quite short:

"Before initiating military action, the president convenes a conference with military and civilian advisers in Washington and around the world to talk through options... The consultation lasts as long as the president wishes, but if enemy missiles are heading toward the U.S. and the president must order a counterstrike, the consultation may last just 30 seconds."

So no, Designated Survivor's scenario, while dramatized, wasn't that far off at all. Trump will have intelligence and nuclear code access, but it should be noted that it is no different than what any recent president has had access to.