The Trump Administration has discharged General Timothy Haugh from his duties as the head of the National Security Agency (NSA) and the U.S. Cyber Command. This surprising development was confirmed late Thursday by top-ranking Democrats on the House and Senate intelligence committees, as well as an inside source familiar with the situation.
General Timothy Haugh’s dismissal from these key intelligence agencies was brought to light by Representative Jim Himes of Connecticut, the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, and Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, the vice chair of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
As the current deputy director of the Cyber Command, Lieutenant General William Hartman is set to serve as the acting NSA director, according to the source who disclosed this information to CBS News. When CBS News reached out for a comment, a spokesperson from the NSA had no comment. Similarly, the White House and the office of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The first news of General Haugh’s termination was reported by the Washington Post. However, no further details were immediately available.
Representative Himes expressed his deep concern over the decision in a statement, “I have known General Haugh to be an honest and forthright leader who followed the law and put national security first — I fear those are precisely the qualities that could lead to his firing in this Administration.”
General Haugh had only been serving as the NSA director for just over a year. He was first nominated for the position by former President Joe Biden in May 2023. However, his Senate confirmation was delayed until December of the same year due to a months-long hold placed by Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville on military nominations, protesting a Pentagon policy on reimbursing travel expenses for service members who seek reproductive health care.
Despite these political hurdles, General Haugh had met with billionaire Elon Musk, who heads the White House’s Department of Government Efficiency, last month. This department has been tasked by President Trump to cut down the size of the federal workforce.
Senator Warner voiced his concerns about this decision in a statement, referencing the Salt Typhoon cyberattack from China which targeted U.S. telecom companies last year. He said, “At a time when the United States is facing unprecedented cyber threats, as the Salt Typhoon cyberattack from China has so clearly underscored, how does firing him make Americans any safer?”
General Haugh recently testified on Capitol Hill about the Signal leak. In this incident, a journalist for The Atlantic had been added to a group chat with high-ranking members of the Trump administration, including Hegseth and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. This chat was regarding an operation to bomb Houthi targets. General Haugh was not a part of this chat.
The role of the NSA director is to report to the DNI. Senator Warner expressed his astonishment that Mr. Trump would fire a nonpartisan and experienced leader of the National Security Agency. Meanwhile, he noted, the President has failed to hold any member of his team accountable for leaking classified information on a commercial messaging app. He also criticized the President for apparently taking staffing direction on national security from Laura Loomer, a discredited conspiracy theorist.
Earlier on Thursday, CBS News discovered that at least six staff members from the National Security Council had been dismissed following a visit by Laura Loomer to the Oval Office.
This shocking turn of events has raised concerns among many about the state of the nation’s security. The abrupt dismissal of General Haugh, a respected leader in the intelligence community, has left many questioning the decision-making process of the Trump Administration, especially in such crucial areas as national security and cyber defense.
The nation now looks to Lieutenant General William Hartman, the appointed acting NSA director, to step into this crucial role at a time when the United States is grappling with significant cyber threats. All eyes will be on the new leadership to see how they navigate these challenging times. The nation is watching, hoping for strong and efficient leadership to guide the country’s intelligence agencies and ensure the safety and security of all Americans.
The story was reported by Andres Triay, Robert Costa, and Eleanor Watson for CBS News. The contribution of these reporters to the report is acknowledged. Faris Tanyos, a news editor for CBSNews.com, where he writes and edits stories and tracks breaking news, also contributed to this report. Tanyos had previously worked as a digital news producer at several local news stations up and down the West Coast.
