May 23, 2025
Trump slashes National Security Council from 400 to 50 staff during Iran crisis
National security team decimated during crisis as policy disagreements surface
🌪️Disaster Management🛡️National Security🏛️Government
In May 2025, Trump dramatically reduced National Security Council staff from nearly 400 to about 50 people.
Marco Rubio now serves dual roles as both Secretary of State and National Security Advisor after Mike Waltz was reassigned following internal disagreements about Iran policy and military strategy.
On 2025-05-23, President Donald Trump cut National Security Council staff from nearly 400 to about 50 people under Marco Rubio’s leadership (Q1, Axios: White House NSC Trump Rubio restructuring).
Trump appointed Marco Rubio to serve simultaneously as Secretary of State and acting National Security Advisor—an unprecedented dual role arrangement (Q2, Washington Post: National Security Council staff cuts).
NSC staff were notified of their termination by email at 4:30 PM on a Friday before a holiday weekend and given 30 minutes to clean out their desks and leave (Q4, NPR: Trump dismisses NSC staff).
🌪️Disaster Management🛡️National Security🏛️Government
People, bills, and sources
Donald Trump (President)
ordered the reduction of NSC staff from nearly 400 to about 50 on 2025-05-23 and reassigned his National Security Advisor.
Marco Rubio (Secretary of State and acting National Security Advisor)
now holds both diplomatic and military advisory roles after the May 2025 reshuffle.
Mike Waltz (former National Security Advisor)
was reassigned following internal disagreements about Iran policy and military strategy (Description).
What You Can Do
1
Consult the Axios report dated 2025-05-23 (https://www.axios.com/2025/05/23/white-house-national-security-council-trump-rubio) to verify the NSC staffing reduction and assess how expertise gaps may affect crisis management.
2
Review the Washington Post analysis (https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2025/05/23/national-security-council-trump-rubio/) for detailed explanation of the implications of Marco Rubio’s dual role on decision-making checks and balances.
3
Examine CNN’s coverage of Mike Waltz’s reassignment (https://www.cnn.com/2025/05/23/politics/national-security-council-administrative-leave-trump) to understand the security breach that precipitated his removal and its lessons for classified-information protocols.