National Security Council Shakeup, George Floyd Murder and Political Extremism
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What happened in the National Security Council?
Another major shakeup at the White House National Security Council.
Officials tell NPR that dozens of staff were fired yesterday afternoon. I'm Ayesha Roscoe.
And I'm Scott Simon, and this is Up First from NPR News.
The National Security Council provides advice to the president on the biggest diplomatic and security decisions.
But these firings are seen as a way to eliminate bureaucracy and duplication. What might be the impact on national security?
And tomorrow marks five years since George Floyd was murdered by a Minneapolis police officer. His death triggered large-scale protests across the country. and a reckoning with racism in the U.S.
But how did a moment of apparent national unity generate a backlash? We'll have reporting on how George Floyd's death fueled conspiracies and political extremism. So please stay with us. We have the news you need to start your weekend.
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President Trump revamped his national security team at the start of this month when he named Marco Rubio as his national security advisor.
Now the National Security Council, which Rubio oversees in addition to remaining Secretary of State, is undergoing a dramatic restructure. NPR's Greg Myrie joins us. Greg, thanks for being with us. Hi, Scott. Now the Trump administration hasn't made any announcement, but NPR has been reporting this story. What do we know?
So dozens of staffers at the National Security Council were abruptly dismissed on Friday afternoon. They were informed at 4.30 p.m. and told to leave by 5. This comes from sources who spoke with our NPR colleagues Tom Bowman and Franco Ordonez. Now, the White House has not commented, so we don't have details or know the precise motive, but attention is certainly focused on Marco Rubio. He was and is Secretary of State. Then at the beginning of this month, as you noted, Trump dismissed his national security advisor, Mike Waltz, and gave Rubio that job as well. This means Rubio is responsible for this National Security Council, and we're seeing this shake up just three weeks after he was put in charge.
And Greg, remind us of the role of the National Security Council.
Yeah, so the NSC works out of the White House. It has 200 to 300 staffers, depending on the presidential administration. It plays a key role in developing and implementing the president's foreign policy, even though we don't hear a lot about it. Many of these staffers are on loan from other departments, the Pentagon, the State Department, the CIA. The NSC has grown over the years. There are periodic calls to scale it back. One of Trump's national security advisors in his first term, Robert O'Brien, recently wrote this in an op-ed. One source, for example, told NPR that the Middle East section at the NSC is being reduced from 10 staffers to five. So it appears to be an attempt to streamline the national security process, though, again, we don't know precisely because it was done without notice or explanation.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What happened in the National Security Council?
0:02–7:58
2
What triggered the protests after George Floyd's death?
7:58–9:27
3
How did the protests evolve into political extremism?
9:27–12:07
4
What role did the pandemic play in the protests?
12:07–15:44
5
What were the consequences of the protests for racial justice?
15:44–16:26
6
How did narratives around the protests change over time?
16:26–17:10
7
What was the impact of extremist groups during the protests?
17:10–18:24
8
How did public perception shift regarding law enforcement?
18:24–22:10
Speakers
9 identifiedMore from Up First from NPR
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