Jan 22, 2025 - Politics & Policy
Trump's loyalty test
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The Trump administration is screening the loyalty of approximately 160 career civil servants assigned to the National Security Council, Axios' Ivana Saric and Marc Caputo report.
- Why it matters: The screenings are part of a larger push by President Trump to reshape the federal workforce — including staffing the administration with loyalists and making it easier to fire civil servants.
🧮 Approximately 160 civil servants on the NSC, known as "detailees," are having their employment reviewed.
- These reviews are at "different stages" but nearly all "are being impacted today," a national security source briefed on the matter told Axios.
- The sidelined detailees have been told to temporarily work from home as the process continues, per AP.
👀 Even before Trump took office, members of his administration began questioning NSC employees about their political affiliations and actions, to determine their loyalty to the president.
- The Justice Department also reportedly ordered federal prosecutors to investigate state and local law enforcement if they refuse to enforce the administration's new immigration policies.
