I wonder if this isn't one of those occasions like I read about recently in regard to discovery motions against corporations, to wit: if the company is big enough, chances are that someone has taken every possible position on something.

What's not clear here was whether the suggestion to nuke and deny was followed by a chorus of "Yes, Mister Vice President, I believe that'll work," or "Very funny, but I can't take that to the Veep."