Trump team building a wall inside National Security Council



President Donald Trump's national security adviser is planning to rely on a new layer of hand-picked aides to serve as a "barrier" between the professional staff of the National Security Council and top White House officials, according to two sources with direct knowledge.

Such a move by retired Lt. Gen. Mike Flynn is stoking fears of an even more insular decision-making process than reigned during the Obama administration, which was roundly criticized for micro-managing national security and eroding the influence of the Pentagon, State Department and other agencies. And it is prompting some frustrated career staffers in the primary policymaking body inside the White House, who had been asked to stay on under Trump, to consider departing instead, say the sources.

"You will not have the experts in the room when the principals are having these discussions," worries one NSC veteran who has heard complaints from White House officials this week. The person, like others, agreed to speak on condition of anonymity.

"They are not being used," added another source with direct knowledge of the developments, who similarly expressed concern that the Trump team is "doubling down on cutting out the professional experts."

"They have been emasculated and have no authority," the source added. "But they are still getting hammered by agencies and allies and don't know what to tell them. … Many are heading for the exits."

The concerns come after Trump granted his political strategist Steve Bannon, who is separately constructing his own power center inside the West Wing, membership of the highest rung of the National Security Council, traditionally reserved for Cabinet chiefs. Permitting a political operative to participate in the high level meetings was seen by many as a dangerous break with tradition and prompted at least one member of Congress to recommend the 1947 law that created the body be changed.

http://www.politico.com/story/2017/02/trump-national-security-234526