Michele Kelemen
Michele Kelemen has been with NPR for two decades, starting as NPR's Moscow bureau chief and now covering the State Department and Washington's diplomatic corps. Her reports can be heard on all NPR News programs, including Morning Edition and All Things Considered.
As Diplomatic Correspondent, Kelemen has traveled with Secretaries of State from Colin Powell to Mike Pompeo and everyone in between. She reports on the Trump administration's "America First" foreign policy and before that the Obama and Bush administration's diplomatic agendas. She was part of the NPR team that won the 2007 Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia University Award for coverage of the war in Iraq.
As NPR's Moscow bureau chief, Kelemen chronicled the end of the Yeltsin era and Vladimir Putin's consolidation of power. She recounted the terrible toll of the latest war in Chechnya, while also reporting on a lighter side of Russia, with stories about modern day Russian literature and sports.
Kelemen came to NPR in September 1998, after eight years working for the Voice of America. There, she learned the ropes as a news writer, newscaster and show host.
Michele earned her Bachelor's degree from the University of Pennsylvania and a Master's degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies in Russian and East European Affairs and International Economics.
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NPR correspondents recap how funding cuts, layoffs and leadership and policy changes in the second Trump administration are affecting the Departments of Defense, State and Health and Human Services.
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio has unveiled his plan to streamline a department that he says has become too bloated over the years. He's cutting 132 offices and about 700 jobs at the state department -
Trump administration reforms at the State Department are shrinking the United States' diplomatic footprint globally.
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It's been more than a decade since the two powers have had direct talks. President Trump offered few details about what the talks would entail, or when they'd be scheduled. -
Second lady Usha Vance has scrapped a plan to attend Greenland's national dog sled race this week. But American tax dollars will help support the race anyway. -
The Senate confirmation hearing for Mike Huckabee, President Trump's pick for ambassador to Israel, is being held Tuesday after it was delayed by controversy over his appointment.
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The U.S. Institute of Peace, a think tank funded by Congress, was the scene of a hostile takeover by the Department of Government Efficiency. DOGE has tried to install new leadership at the institute. -
Secretary of State Marco Rubio says he's kicking out the Ambassador from South Africa -accusing him of hating America and hating Donald Trump. -
The United States said it will resume sending military aid and intelligence to Ukraine, as Ukraine agreed to a Trump administration proposal for a monthlong ceasefire. -
Workers who served in the U.S. Agency for International Development were allowed a final and brief visit back to their offices to clear out their belongings on Thursday.
