Newsweek reports that US military planners are looking at range of radical hypotheticals amid the coronavirus crisis 

Should the country's top politicians be struck down by COVID-19 and civil government be incapacitated, martial law could be imposed

Gen. Terrence J. O'Shaughnessy is the 'combatant commander' for the United States and would lead the country if Washington were crippled

The scenario appears highly unlikely, but there are also current debates about whether armed forces could be allowed to exercise 'emergency authority'

The military could possibly serve a policing function if widespread violence breaks out due to food shortages or financial chaos caused by coronavirus