The townspeople of Vilseck, Germany, worry that Trump may pull out 5,000 U.S. troops

The townspeople of Vilseck, Germany, worry that Trump may pull out 5,000 U.S. troops May 16, 20266:00 AM ET Rob Schmitz Mayor Thorsten Grädler of Vilseck, Germany, discovered that his town could be the target of President Trump's U.S. troop cuts on his first day in office, when a journalist told him during a press conference. Grädler says the impact on his town would be "dramatic." Lisi Niesner/Reuters hide caption toggle caption Lisi Niesner/Reuters VILSECK, Germany — It was Thorsten Grädler's first day on the job as mayor of the Bavarian town of Vilseck when, at his introductory press conference, a journalist broke it to him. "Did you hear the news? It's bad news," said the journalist, informing the new mayor of a German media report that President Trump's announced cuts to the U.S. troop presence in Germany would mean the removal of 5,000 soldiers from the town he'd just been elected to run. Mayor Grädler's face sank. "Are you serious? This is hitting me hard, I have to admit," he said, his eyes welling up with tears. "I'm pretty emotional, actually." Sponsor Message Consider This from NPR Trump says he's pulling U.S. troops from Germany. Does it matter? Since that day, Grädler has been busy doing interviews with international media that have descended on his tiny town, population 6,500. While he finishes up his fifth interview of the day, the town's church bell rings noon, and roosters in the alley behind Vilseck City Hall respond with a chorus of cock-a-doodle-doos. View of Vilseck in the Upper Palatinate. The U.S. Department of Defense announced its intention to withdraw about 5,000 of the approximately 37,000 U.S. soldiers stationed in Germany. Bayerischer Rundfunk reported that the so-called Stryker Brigade in Vilseck, Bavaria, would be affected. Lisi Niesner/Reuters hide caption toggle caption Lisi Niesner/Reuters This tiny Bavarian town has a 1,000-year-old castle, a 700-year-old watchtower, and a mayor in office for just a few days who's facing one of the...