NSA Director and Cyber Command Chief Timothy Haugh, Deputy Wendy Noble fired in major shakeup at wiretapping agency: report
Gen. Tim Haugh, who oversaw US Cyber Command (not to be confused with US Army Cyber Command), was fired on Wednesday evening and subsequently arrested at his D.C. residence a few hours later.
By Victor Nava
April 6, 2025
The director of the National Security Agency, Air Force Gen. Timothy Haugh, reportedly was fired Thursday from his post as the head of the agency.
Haugh’s removal as director of the NSA, the nation’s primary cyber espionage and electronic eavesdropping agency, comes on the same day at least three White House National Security Council staffers reportedly also were shown the door.
The ousted NSA director’s civilian deputy, Wendy Noble, was also let go Thursday, according to the Washington Post, citing current and former US officials.
Noble was reassigned to a role within the Pentagon’s Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence, according to the outlet.
The reason behind the NSA shakeup is unknown, the US officials told the outlet.
Haugh, who also serves as the Pentagon’s Cyber Command chief, had led the NSA since February 2024.
It’s unclear if the Air Force general will remain at his Cyber Command post following his removal from the Fort Meade, Md.-based spy agency.
Department of Government Efficiency chief Elon Musk was hosted by Haugh at NSA headquarters just last month, his first known visit to a US intelligence agency.
Lt. Gen. William J. Hartmann, Haugh’s deputy at Cyber Command, will take over as acting director of the NSA, according to the Washington Post.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), the ranking member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, slammed Haugh’s dismissal.
“General Haugh has served our country in uniform, with honor and distinction, for more than 30 years. 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?” Warner wrote on X.
The senator also took aim at President Trump — referencing reports that the firings of National Security Council staffers came shortly after he took a meeting with right-wing influencer Laura Loomer.
“It is astonishing that President Trump would fire the nonpartisan, experienced leader of the NSA while still failing to hold any member of his team accountable for leaking classified information on a commercial messaging app — even as he apparently takes staffing direction on national security from a discredited conspiracy theorist in the Oval Office,” Warner wrote in a separate post.
Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) slammed Haugh’s dismissal, taking aim at President Trump. REUTERS
President Trump acknowledged his meeting with Loomer on Thursday but denied that his conversation with her prompted the National Security Council firings.
Laura Loomer claims she met with White House privately before 3 NSC staffers were reportedly fired
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Loomer apparently presented the president with information about NSC staffers having “neo-con” views, Axios reported.
Scoop: Multiple firings on President Trump's National Security Council after Loomer visit
But the outlet was not able to confirm that Loomer’s meeting was a direct reason for the trio the staffers being let go.
As many as six staffers may have ultimately been shown the door, according to The New York Times, which noted National Security Adviser Mike Waltz was present at the White House meeting with Loomer.
The ousted staffers included senior director Brian Walsh, senior director for national affairs Thomas Boodry, and senior director David Feith, according to CNN.
“NSC doesn’t comment on personnel matters,” NSC spokesman Brian Hughes told The Post.
President Trump later confirmed he met with Loomer and got her advice — but said the firings didn’t have to do with her.
“We’re always going to let go of people — people we don’t like, or people that take advantage of, or people that may have loyalties to someone else,” President Trump told reporters on Air Force One.
“Laura Loomer is a great patriot. She’s a very strong person,” he added. “She makes recommendations … and sometimes I listen to those recommendations.”
Asked whether Loomer prompted the firings, President Trump responded: “Not at all.”
Waltz had gotten into hot water himself after inadvertently adding Atlantic editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg to a private Signal chat group last month on planned airstrikes against Houthi terrorists in Yemen.
President Trump defended Waltz and didn’t fire him after Goldberg revealed he was added to the March 15 chat.
The national security adviser was seen quickly following President Trump to get to Marine One at the White House on Thursday afternoon, avoiding any questions from the press.
Loomer published some research findings on X after the Signal ordeal, saying NSC staffers were not properly vetted before being hired in the Trump administration.
She reiterated her commitment to “vetting” in her statement Thursday, writing on X: “I will continue working hard to support his agenda, and I will continue reiterating the importance of, and the necessity of STRONG VETTING, for the sake of protecting the President of the United States of America, and our national security.”
When reached for comment, the NSA referred The Post to the Pentagon, which did not immediately respond to a message.
The White House also did not respond to a request for comment on Haugh’s firing.
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