Discussions about possibly renaming several U.S. military bases that are named after Confederate generals have been revived days after President Donald Trump vehemently opposed the idea of renaming the bases, NBC News reports.
Three senior Trump administration officials told NBC News that the president is aware that conversations about the possible renaming of bases are taking place again.
There has been a push to rename the bases in the wake of national calls for racial justice and police reform after the death of George Floyd, a black man, who was killed by a white police officer in Minneapolis last month.
White House officials told NBC News that exploratory discussions have focused on whether to involve Trump in a renaming process.
"It's a foregone conclusion that the bases will be renamed, so why not try to influence who they're named after?" one senior administration official told NBC News.
On Wednesday, a White House official said Trump’s "position hasn't changed on renaming bases."
But, some sources say that Trump’s advisers outside of the White House are trying to convince the president to change his mind on the topic. Some told the president he could help select the new names, if he changes his stance.
There has been bipartisan support in Congress for the renaming of bases. An amendment on the topic has move forward in the GOP-controlled Senate.
On Tuesday, Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., pitched an expanded effort that would require all military bases to be renamed after Medal of Honor recipients. Changing just bases named for Confederate generals, Kennedy said, "picks on the South unfairly."
Defense Secretary Mark Esper and Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy both said they support changing the names.
Three senior administration officials said White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows is against the renaming of the bases and has told Trump to reject the idea.
One official said Meadows told Trump he would lose support of core voters if he opted to rename the bases.
Before Trump publicly stated he was against the renaming, Army Secretary McCarthy announced a plan to create a task force to study the issue.
The task force would look at bases, streets and buildings named after Confederate soldiers and would seek feedback from soldiers.
The Secretary of the Army can rename a base without any approval from Congress or the president. Congress can vote to force a name change, but Trump would have veto power. The White House has no authority to change a name on its own, according to NBC News.
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