House Armed Services Chairman Adam Smith (D-Wash Wash) said Trump was “talking about trying to split cyber command from the National Security Agency amid the crisis of talking about that kind of disruption.” Saturday night during an interview with CNN.
On Friday, Smith warned acting defense secretary Christopher Miller and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milne, against stepping down as head of the NSA and cyber command. Since the Pentagon’s cyber command in 2009, the two agencies have shared leadership under a so-called dual-hat system.
Nakaso has led the military’s top digital anti-war unit and the federal government’s largest intelligence agency for nearly a century. He re-imagined how the two organizations could organize their own hackers and analysts against foreign rivals through the principle of “continuous engagement” – including keeping US forces in constant contact with the opponent in cyberspace, tracking them down and carrying out abusive actions.
Four Star is loved by both Democrats and Republicans, especially after defending the 2018 and 2020 elections from foreign interference. Some legislators also joke that they wish they could hand over more parts of the federal government to Nakason.
Trump, meanwhile, has been shaken by the leadership of several federal agencies since losing last month’s presidential election, including the Pentagon and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. The president fired the agency’s widely-respected chief, Chris Krebs, via Twitter last month.
Under the previous Defense Policy Bill, breaking cyber command and NSA is prohibited. The move states that unless the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff jointly certify that the move will not impede the effectiveness of the cyber command, which is with the NSA at Fort Mead, Mo.
A Democratic congressional staffer said there was concern on Capitol Hill that Miller and other DOD leaders could simply say the assessment was complete to overcome the split without taking the necessary action.
The defense official warned that, even if there is a change in leadership, President-elect Joe Biden and his defense team could reverse the decision and rejoin the offensive digital unit and intelligence organization.
