ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
The Trump administration has abruptly fired the general in charge of the National Security Agency, the spy service that collects cyber intelligence. Since taking office, President Trump's team has dismissed several top military officers without providing a substantive reason or any reason at all. NPR national security correspondent Greg Myre is here. Hey, Greg.
GREG MYRE, BYLINE: Hi, Ari.
SHAPIRO: We don't often hear about the NSA. Who was the general running it?
MYRE: Yeah. He's Air Force General Timothy Haugh. He's been in the Air Force for more than 30 years, much of it in intelligence and cyber, a very distinguished, if low-key career because of the nature of this work. Now, the NSF - the NSA chief is a general or an admiral, and presidents typically inherit an NSA director, as was the case here. And there's no fixed term for the job, but they usually serve three, four years, then a president may appoint a successor. But Haugh was in the post just over a year, and there was no sense that his job was in jeopardy. And in addition, his deputy, Wendy Noble - a civilian - was also dismissed.
SHAPIRO: What do you know about the reason? Why were they dismissed?
MYRE: Well, we don't know. The White House and the NSA have not commented. However, far-right activist and conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer, who met Trump on Wednesday, praised the dismissals and seemed to take credit. Without providing evidence, Loomer claimed on X that Haugh and Noble were disloyal to President Trump. She described Haugh as a Biden appointee who was, quote, "hand picked" by now-retired General Mark Milley.
Now, we know there's bad blood between Trump and Milley dating back to Trump's first term, but there was nothing unusual about what happened in this case. Back in 2023, Milley was chairman of the Joint Chiefs. In that role, he puts forward names and recommendations of senior military officers when positions open up. That's what he did, and former President Biden selected Haugh. Trump has acknowledged speaking with Loomer on Wednesday, said she made some recommendation, but the president said he has the final word on any personnel moves.
SHAPIRO: Well, outside of the Trump administration, how are people reacting to this?
MYRE: Sharply critical, mostly from Democrats, but also some Republicans. Senator Mark Warner of Virginia and Representative Jim Himes of Connecticut - the top Democrats on the Senate and House Intelligence Committees - both said Haugh was doing an excellent job, and they're demanding an explanation. Haugh was among several national security leaders who testified just last week before the Senate and House Intelligence Committees, and he wasn't the one getting the attention. Many questions were directed at CIA Director John Ratcliffe and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. They were part of that now infamous Signal chat group regarding the U.S. bombing campaign in Yemen. Haugh wasn't part of that group.
SHAPIRO: Could you take a step back and explain why this position - director of the National Security Agency - is so important?
MYRE: Yeah. The NSA is the largest intelligence agency. It won't tell you how many employees it has, but it's believed to be around 40,000 - much larger than the CIA. The NSA gathers electronic intelligence. That means it's tapping into phones and computers in foreign countries. And this is in contrast to the CIA, which focuses on human intelligence. One thing you often hear is that material gathered by the NSA accounts for the bulk of what's in the president's daily intelligence briefing, even more so than the CIA. So the head of the NSA holds a critical job, though he operates mostly below the radar.
SHAPIRO: NPR's Greg Myre, thank you for your reporting.
MYRE: Sure thing, Ari. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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