Rich Lowry: Obama’s Parting Shot

The Obama administration is entering its final months, but it's never too late to further diminish U.S. influence and discomfit our allies.

President Barack Obama is considering adopting a policy of "no first use," i.e., declaring that the United States would never use nuclear weapons except after a nuclear attack on itself or its allies. From Obama's perspective, this change would have the dual advantage of being something he can legitimately do on his own and representing a radical departure in the country's nuclear doctrine.

For 70 years, presidents of both parties have maintained a posture...