Thread by @AndyKimNJ

I worked at the National Security Council for 2 yrs and want to explain why yesterday’s decision to cut nearly everyone is dangerous. This purge will sacrifice our nation’s security so a handful of people can exert more political control. Here’s who wins and who loses. THREAD

WHY IT MATTERS: NSC doesn’t have armies/embassies; its power comes from controlling the Situation Room, meaning it’s the only entity that can force others to coordinate/debate. 2/13

I remember when DOD was hesitant to take action to stop a massacre on Sinjar Mountain but an NSC meeting in the SitRoom got everyone to support a plan that saved thousands of lives. 3/13

Global crises aren’t solved with one department or agency. They need a place to coordinate, deconflict, and put together the best recommendations possible for the President to make decisions. This is what a fully-staffed and well-oiled NSC does. 4/13

WHO WINS: By removing the mechanisms to coordinate, those who can seize the greatest amount of power will have the biggest voice in the room. Quietly, Tulsi Gabbard has taken steps this week to take over the “President’s Daily Brief.” This is a big deal. 5/13

The PDB is a daily exercise in determining what are the most important pieces of information for the President/Cabinet to see. Gabbard is taking this power from the CIA to reduce “dissent” of the MAGA worldview. 6/13
nytimes.com/2025/05/14/us/…

The NSC is the only other entity that has full access to the PDB and on a daily basis provides context and assessment on what’s written. Without the NSC staff and with the CIA’s role reduced, Tulsi grows stronger and can more directly shape what the President knows. 7/13

Vance has successfully maneuvered to get his own National Security Advisor to be the Deputy under Rubio. With Rubio often busy with his day job at State and absent from the White House, Vance’s guy will be in a strong place to drive. 8/13

It’s not just national security officials looking to seize the agenda who win, it’s conspiracy theorists like Laura Loomer who have set the tone that the only qualification to work in these critical jobs is fealty to an agenda. 9/13

WHO LOSES: First and foremost, the President and the country. Without staff, most of the coordination needed to inform good decision making will disappear. That empowers the two biggest departments: Defense and State, and other actors who elbow their way in with their own agendas. 10/13

There won’t be daily transparency of actions and decisions. There won’t be follow up to make sure actions are completed. When disputes arise between Departments, which happens constantly, there will be less ability to deliberate. Rubio and Hegseth can do what they want. 11/13

The NSC is meant to monitor potential crises across the globe and be quickly able to consider what our response should be. Without NSC professional, non-partisan staff, we increase blind spots, and we lose expertise and coordination that we have to keep our country safe. 12/13

National security is the last place where politics and power struggles belong, but that’s exactly what this move does. These cuts don’t make you safer, they just make a few people more powerful and less accountable. That’s the core of almost every decision made by this President, and sadly, we all have to pay the consequences. END