The Trump administration just took a sledgehammer to the National Security Council—and they didn’t swing lightly. On May 23, over 100 NSC staffers were shown the door, many told to pack up and leave in under half an hour. The council, which had ballooned to roughly 300 employees under Biden, was already trimmed down by the time Trump came back. Now, it’s reportedly being cut to around 50. That’s more than a haircut—it’s a scalping. And it’s one of the most dramatic overhauls of the NSC we’ve ever seen.
Entire directorates are gone—Ukraine, Kashmir, African affairs—all either dissolved or folded into other departments. The message is clear: the NSC’s job is no longer to shape U.S. foreign policy, but to carry out what’s already decided. Career officials are being sent back to their home agencies. Political appointees are getting pink slips. Some teams don’t even exist anymore.
Leadership’s been shaken up, too. Marco Rubio, already wearing the Secretary of State hat, is now acting national security adviser after Mike Waltz got canned. His offense? Reportedly sharing sensitive military plans with a journalist. We all know that story by now.
Andy Baker, a VP JD Vance adviser, is stepping in as deputy.
The White House says this is all about cutting the fat and streamlining operations. They claim the NSC had become bloated and duplicative, and that the real policy muscle should come from State and Defense. But let’s not pretend this is just about efficiency. Behind closed doors, administration sources aren’t shy—they say this is part of an effort to rip out what they see as the “Deep State.” The move follows a campaign by firebrand activist Laura Loomer, who publicly accused NSC staff of disloyalty.
So what happens next? A lot of the power traditionally held by the NSC is shifting to the Pentagon and Foggy Bottom. That might sound like good old-fashioned decentralization, but critics—including some inside Trump’s own party—are sounding alarms. They’re worried this purge will cripple coordination and leave the government flat-footed in the face of a crisis. When you gut institutional memory, you better hope you don’t need it later.
Presidents have reshaped the NSC before—it’s their prerogative. But Trump’s taking it to a whole new level. From Biden’s 300 down to just 50 staffers, this is a fundamental shift in how America’s national security policy is made and managed. Whether it leads to a leaner, meaner decision-making machine or a foreign policy free-for-all remains to be seen.
Stay tuned, America.
The Trump administration just took a sledgehammer to the National Security Council—and they didn’t swing lightly. On May 23, over 100 NSC staffers were shown the door, many told to pack up and leave in under half an hour. The council, which had ballooned to roughly 300 employees under Biden, was already trimmed down by the time Trump came back. Now, it’s reportedly being cut to around 50. That’s more than a haircut—it’s a scalping. And it’s one of the most dramatic overhauls of the NSC we’ve ever seen.
Entire directorates are gone—Ukraine, Kashmir, African affairs—all either dissolved or folded into other departments. The message is clear: the NSC’s job is no longer to shape U.S. foreign policy, but to carry out what’s already decided. Career officials are being sent back to their home agencies. Political appointees are getting pink slips. Some teams don’t even exist anymore.
Leadership’s been shaken up, too. Marco Rubio, already wearing the Secretary of State hat, is now acting national security adviser after Mike Waltz got canned. His offense? Reportedly sharing sensitive military plans with a journalist. We all know that story by now.
Andy Baker, a VP JD Vance adviser, is stepping in as deputy.
The White House says this is all about cutting the fat and streamlining operations. They claim the NSC had become bloated and duplicative, and that the real policy muscle should come from State and Defense. But let’s not pretend this is just about efficiency. Behind closed doors, administration sources aren’t shy—they say this is part of an effort to rip out what they see as the “Deep State.” The move follows a campaign by firebrand activist Laura Loomer, who publicly accused NSC staff of disloyalty.
So what happens next? A lot of the power traditionally held by the NSC is shifting to the Pentagon and Foggy Bottom. That might sound like good old-fashioned decentralization, but critics—including some inside Trump’s own party—are sounding alarms. They’re worried this purge will cripple coordination and leave the government flat-footed in the face of a crisis. When you gut institutional memory, you better hope you don’t need it later.
Presidents have reshaped the NSC before—it’s their prerogative. But Trump’s taking it to a whole new level. From Biden’s 300 down to just 50 staffers, this is a fundamental shift in how America’s national security policy is made and managed. Whether it leads to a leaner, meaner decision-making machine or a foreign policy free-for-all remains to be seen.
Stay tuned, America.
Russia Attacks Kyiv Following Prisoner Swap
Just hours after Russia and Ukraine pulled off the biggest prisoner swap of the war so far, Kyiv got hammered in a massive overnight assault. On Saturday, May 24, 2025, the Russian military launched a coordinated attack using 14 ballistic missiles and an overwhelming swarm of 250 drones. Ukraine’s air defense did an impressive job—intercepting 6 of those missiles and shooting down 245 drones—but some still got through, and the damage was real.
Kyiv took the brunt of the strike. Explosions rocked several districts—Sviatoshinskyi, Obolon, Solomianskyi, and Dniprovskyi. Fires broke out in apartment blocks and shopping centers. High-rises had their windows blown out. At least 15 people were injured in the capital alone, with more wounded in the surrounding areas. Civilians rushed to subway stations for shelter, as air raid sirens blared and the city lit up with blasts and falling debris. First responders were working nonstop to put out fires and deal with damage across the city.
The timing couldn’t have been more pointed. Just a few hours earlier, Russia and Ukraine had exchanged 1,000 prisoners each—the first phase of what’s expected to be the largest swap since the war began. The agreement was brokered in Istanbul, and 390 Ukrainian detainees were confirmed to have returned home in that first wave. More were expected to be released over the weekend. For a brief moment, there was a glimmer of cooperation between two sides that haven’t agreed on much of anything lately.
But any hopes that this swap signaled a cooling-off period were quickly crushed. Russia’s missile-and-drone barrage sent a different kind of message—one written in fire and shrapnel. President Zelensky condemned the attack and used the moment to renew calls for tougher international sanctions on Moscow.
It wasn’t just Kyiv that was struck. Russian forces also hit Kharkiv and Donetsk, killing at least five civilians. Meanwhile, Moscow claimed Ukraine had been launching its own drone and missile strikes into Russian territory, most of which they say were intercepted. As always, the truth in this war is a matter of perspective—unless you’re the one digging through rubble.
So what does it all mean? It means the war isn’t slowing down anytime soon. Even after something as significant as a massive prisoner swap, Russia didn’t skip a beat before bringing the hammer down on civilian targets. The message from the Kremlin is clear: cooperation doesn’t mean concession. And for the people of Kyiv, the cost of that message was yet another night spent underground, hoping the next explosion doesn’t have their name on it.
Trump Fast-Tracks Nuclear Power Plans
President Trump just fired the starting gun on what might be the most aggressive push for nuclear power in U.S. history. On May 23, 2025, he signed a series of executive orders aimed at fast-tracking nuclear energy like never before. This is more than a mere policy tweak—it’s a full-blown overhaul of how America licenses, builds, and uses nuclear reactors, especially for military bases and AI data centers that need massive amounts of energy to operate.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has been ordered to pick up the pace—fast. Under the new rules, they’ll have just 18 months to approve new reactor licenses and 12 months for renewals. Environmental reviews are getting trimmed down, and old-school radiation standards are being replaced with what the administration calls “science-based” limits. The message is clear: the days of dragging things out in red tape are over.
Trump’s also cleared the way for the Departments of Energy and Defense to start building reactors on federal land, especially at military installations and for high-tech operations. The goal? Get new reactors running within two to three years. That’s lightning speed by nuclear standards. And this push isn’t just about the old-style nuclear plants. There’s a big focus on small modular reactors (SMRs) and microreactors—compact, efficient systems that can be deployed quickly and scaled to fit exact needs.
The long-term target is even bolder: Trump wants to quadruple the nation’s nuclear capacity by 2050, jumping from about 100 gigawatts today to 400 gigawatts.
He says this is necessary to keep up with rising electricity demand, especially from AI systems and to ensure national security. Part of that plan includes revitalizing domestic uranium mining and enrichment so the U.S. isn’t reliant on foreign fuel.
The nuclear industry is eating it up. Stock prices jumped, and executives are applauding the move as the end of what they see as decades of overregulation. But not everyone’s onboard. Critics are warning that these changes could erode safety standards and compromise the independence of the NRC. They worry that speeding up the process might come at the cost of doing it right.
Bottom line: Trump is betting big on nuclear power. He’s tying it to energy independence, military readiness, and America’s lead in the AI arms race. Whether or not these ambitious plans come to life on schedule remains to be seen, but one thing’s certain—nuclear is back in the spotlight, and this time it’s wearing a hard hat and steel-toed boots.
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