Trump fires Gen. Timothy Haugh from leadership of Cyber Command and NSA

Gen. Timothy Haugh, the commander of U.S. Cyber Command and director of the NSA, was removed from those positions Thursday — another high-profile firing of a senior national security official by the Trump administration.

It was not immediately clear why Haugh was fired. However, his dismissal comes amid a purge of other national security officials at the National Security Council and NSA. It happened following a visit to the Oval Office of political activist Laura Loomer, who has urged President Donald Trump to fire certain officials due to their perceived disloyalty to him and his agenda. In a social media post Thursday night, Loomer said Haugh and NSA Deputy Director Wendy Noble were fired for being “disloyal” to Trump.

“I am deeply disturbed by the decision to remove General Haugh as Director of the National Security Agency. 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. The Intelligence Committee and the American people need an immediate explanation for this decision, which makes all of us less safe,” Rep. Jim Himes, D-Conn., ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, said in a statement posted on social media.

A defense official told DefenseScoop that Cybercom’s deputy commander, Army Lt. Gen. William Hartman, is currently in charge.

Haugh, the protégé of former Cybercom commander Paul Nakasone, took the helm at the command last February. At the time, many described Haugh as the right person for the job.

With a 34-year career in the Air Force, Haugh made a name for himself as the director of intelligence at Cybercom and then later as the deputy commander of the counter-ISIS task force and commander of the elite Cyber National Mission Force. In the latter role, he helped establish an election defense task force. He was later chosen to lead the Air Force’s information warfare and cyber unit prior to becoming the deputy commander at Cybercom and then commander.

Haugh was slated to testify before Congress next week as part of annual posture hearings where officials provide members an update on their organization and operations.

On Friday morning, an NSA spokesperson referred DefenseScoop to the public affairs office in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. A Defense Department spokesperson said they had seen the press reports about Haugh’s firing but had nothing further to offer. They said they would provide more information when it becomes available.

The White House and National Security Council did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Haugh’s removal comes just a few weeks after Trump fired Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown and Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti, among other senior defense officials.

Before being fired, Haugh was in the midst of what had been described by some as a top-to-bottom review of the command, its forces and structures known as Cybercom 2.0. In fact, the implementation plan was delivered to the secretary of defense March 21 and officials were awaiting approval for further action.

Moreover, there have been calls to sever the dual-hat relationship in which the same individual heads Cybercom and NSA. Press reports have indicated that the Trump administration wanted to renew efforts it began at the end of his first administration to sever that dual hat. It’s unclear if the White House plans to appoint a new person to lead both organizations after Haugh’s firing or eliminate the dual-hat arrangement.