US Pres #Trump called the fighting "a shame" & added, "I hope it ends quickly." Secy of #State #MarcoRubio spoke to the #NationalSecurity advisers of both nations, urging "both to keep lines of communication open & avoid escalation"

#UN Secy-Gen #AntonioGuterres called for maximum military restraint from both countries…. #China, which neighbors both #India & #Pakistan, & #Russia also called for restraint, as did #Britain, which agreed a free #trade deal w/India on Tues.

A collection-emphasis message helps set #intelligence-agency priorities, directing resources & attention to high-interest targets. The #Greenland order, which went to agencies including the #CIA, the #Defense Intelligence Agency & the #NationalSecurity Agency, underscores the #Trump admin’s apparent commitment to seek control of the self-governing island. It forms part of the Kingdom of #Denmark, a #NATO member & a decadeslong #ally.

Update. "#NIH halts funding for new projects with foreign collaborators, citing national security concerns."
https://www.statnews.com/2025/05/01/nih-halts-research-funding-for-projects-involving-foreign-collaborators/

"The National Institutes of Health announced Thursday it will no longer allow subawards to foreign institutions, as part of a national security-minded overhaul to how the agency manages its $47 billion research funding portfolio. The change is likely to cause immediate disruptions to research projects around the world."

“If Jim Baker was doing a side deal with the Saudis to subvert George H.W. Bush, you’d be fired,” a #Trump adviser said, referring to Bush’s secretary of state. “You can’t do that. You work for the president of your country, not a president of another country.”

[I say again, & yet #MikeWaltz still has a job as #UN Ambassador]

…#MikeWaltz “wanted to take US policy in a direction #Trump wasn’t comfortable with because the US hadn’t attempted a diplomatic solution,” according to one of the people.

“It got back to Trump & the president wasn’t happy with it,” that person said.

…The view by some in the admin was that Waltz was trying to tip the scales in favor of #military action & was operating hand in glove w/ the Israelis.

#MikeWaltz’s troubles built up over time, & White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles increasingly felt he was not a good fit….

But Waltz also upset #Trump after an Oval Office visit in early Feb by Israeli PM #Netanyahu, when the #NationalSecurity adviser appeared to share the Israeli leader’s conviction that the time was ripe to strike #Iran….

Waltz appeared to have engaged in intense coordination w/Netanyahu about military options against Iran….

The writer, Gabriella Cantor, pointed out the obvious #ConflictOfInterest: The archivist is supposed to ensure that other #FederalAgencies, including the 2 #Rubio is also leading, preserve records. Now, with the addition of the White House #NationalSecurity Council [#NSC], that becomes thornier.

Even before #Trump appointed the top US diplomat/archivist/aid agency administrator to be interim #NationalSecurity adviser, analysts were pointing out the problems w/ #Rubio holding all these positions.

“Occupying 2 (or in Rubio’s case, 3) roles at once is never ideal—directing govt agencies & programs is a significant task that demands attention & focus,” said a post on the site of CREW, a govt watchdog group, in March. “But Rubio’s current positions are uniquely concerning.”

Marocco & members of #Musk’s #DOGE did the daily work of gutting the agency to a husk, cutting contracts & firing thousands of employees, but #Rubio signed off on the moves.

Rubio is moving the remnants of the agency into the #State Dept. Last week, he issued a chart on his planned dept reorganization that shows him keeping the title of #USAID administrator.

But it might be more relevant to look outside the #US for examples. #XiJinping, #China’s leader, is general secretary of the Communist Party, president of China & chairman of the Central Military Commission—still one job short of #Rubio’s tally when counting his top titles (#Xi is also the head of several party groups).

The #Senate unanimously confirmed #MarcoRubio to be Secy of #State. But he entered the other jobs under controversial circumstances.

…having 4 jobs also raises practical issues: Does #Rubio get a pay bump? Will he have time to hop around the globe to do diplomacy? How will he delegate his duties?

There are precedents—sort of. 1973–1975, Henry Kissinger held 2 of Rubio’s jobs, Secy of #State & #NationalSecurity adviser, in an experiment considered a #failure. In the current #Trump admin, #KashPatel, #FBI dir, & #DanielDriscoll, #Army Secy, have both been interim head of the #ATF while also serving in their prominent posts.

"President Donald Trump waited until the 101st day of his administration to fire national security advisor Mike Waltz, the official responsible for including the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic on an unsecure Signal chat in which leaders shared classified information about a military strike on the Houthis in Yemen."

~ Heather Cox Richardson

#Trump #WhiteHouse #chaos #NationalSecurity #MichaelWaltz
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https://heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/may-1-2025