Story thread · 2 reports / 2 sources

Trump Administration Seeks to Bolster Biosecurity Protections After Cuts

thedailybeast.com · 2h · first reportShare

The Trump administration is in a full-on scramble to bandage the deep cuts it made to research staff as fears grow that AI could supercharge development of new-age weapons straight out of a horror movie. President Donald Trump, 80, has scythed away at the number of White House researchers dedicated to biological security since retaking office last year, The Washington Post reports . Under President Joe Biden, up to 30 experts worked on how best to protect the U.S. from deadly pathogens being weaponized by the nation’s adversaries. Under Trump 2.0, their number has shrunk to the point that, at times, no one has been committed solely to these threats, according to the newspaper. “They have kneecapped themselves in their ability to create any policy that would have staying power,” one former official, who withheld their name for fear of retaliation, told the Post. “That’s the risk, they’re not playing the long game.” Read more at The Daily Beast.