Trump's Pentagon is making a lame-duck bid to split U.S. Cyber Command from the NSA


Acting Defense Secretary Chris Miller and other top acting appointees President Trump installed at the Pentagon following a post-election purge are pushing to separate U.S. Cyber Command from the National Security Agency, both currently overseen by Army Gen. Paul Nakasone, Defense One first reported. The last-minute overhaul of the U.S. national security structure is being pursued in the last month of Trump's presidency, as the U.S. government tries to assess the extent of a massive cyber-espionage breach by Russia, and Congress isn't thrilled.
There's been discussion for years about when U.S. Cyber Command, the military's digital war-fighting branch launched in 2009, will be uncoupled from the NSA, the nation's largest spy agency, in charge of collecting foreign signals intelligence. Nakasone — a four-star general "beloved by both Democrats and Republicans," Politico notes — leads both agencies under a "dual hat" arrangement.
"Our government is currently responding to a cyberincident where a sophisticated adversary had access to thousands of U.S. networks," Sens. Angus King (I-Maine) and Ben Sasses (R-Neb.) said in a joint statement Sunday with fellow cybersecurity panelists Reps. Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.) and Jim Langevin (D-R.I.). "Regardless of whether it's better to keep or end the dual-hat arrangement between NSA and CYBERCOM, now is not the time to do it."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The two agencies cannot legally be split apart until the defense secretary and chairman of the joint chiefs of staff — currently Gen. Mark Milley — certify that separation wouldn't diminish the effectiveness of Cyber Command. One U.S. official told The Wall Street Journal the proposal is "very preliminary" and a meeting on it is scheduled for this week. But "with Miller expected to sign off on the move, the fate of the proposal ultimately falls to Milley, who told Congress in 2019 that the dual-hat leadership structure was working and should be maintained," Defense One reports.
"Chairman Milley has not reviewed nor endorsed any recommendation to split CYBERCOM and NSA," a spokesman said. Milley reportedly received the proposal last week. "A defense official cautioned that even if the leadership change should go through, President-elect Joe Biden and his defense team could simply reverse the decision and rejoin the offensive digital unit and the intelligence gathering organization," Politico reports.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Israel strikes Iran, killing military and nuclear chiefs
Speed Read Israeli officials said the attack was a 'preemptive' strike on Iran's nuclear program
-
Israel deports Thunberg after seizing Gaza aid boat
speed read The Swedish activist was delivering food and medical aid to Palestine, highlighting the growing humanitarian crisis there
-
Colombian senator shot on streets of Bogotá
speed read Miguel Uribe Turbay, who has announced his candidacy for next year's presidential election, was shot at a rally
-
Trump says Putin vowed retaliation for Kyiv strike
speed read The Russian president intends to respond to Ukraine's weekend drone strikes on Moscow's warplanes
-
Dutch government falls over immigration policy
speed read The government collapsed after anti-immigration politician Geert Wilders quit the right-wing coalition
-
South Korea elects liberal Lee as president
speed read Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, was elected president following months of political instability in the wake of Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment
-
Nationalist wins tight Polish presidential election
speed read Karol Nawrocki beat Rafal Trzaskowski in Poland's presidential runoff election
-
Ukraine hits Russia's bomber fleet in stealth drone attack
speed read The operation, which destroyed dozens of warplanes, is the 'biggest blow of the war against Moscow's long-range bomber fleet'