Air Force Gen. Timothy Haugh, commander of U.S. Cyber Command and director of the National Security Agency, awaits questioning on March 25, 2025, during a Senate Committee on Intelligence hearing. Haugh was fired Thursday, April 3, 2025. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes)
WASHINGTON — The abrupt firing of the general in charge of U.S. Cyber Command and the National Security Agency drew sharp condemnation on Friday from lawmakers, mostly Democrats, who oversee defense and the intelligence community.
Air Force Gen. Timothy Haugh was removed from his job on Thursday, reportedly at the urging of Laura Loomer, a far-right activist who convinced President Donald Trump to fire several staff on his National Security Council this week.
“The inexplicable overnight firing of General Haugh, a leader of talent and integrity, should leave us all feeling less safe today,” said Rep. Chrissy Houlahan, D-Pa., a former Air Force officer and a member of the House Armed Services Committee.
Haugh was unanimously confirmed by the Senate in December 2023 for his dual role as commander of Cyber Command, which oversees cyberspace operations, and director of the National Security Agency, the wiretapping and cyber espionage service.
He previously served as a top deputy at Cyber Command during former President Joe Biden’s administration.
Loomer seemed to take credit for Haugh’s ouster in a post on X, writing he had been “disloyal to President Trump” and “had no place” serving in the administration because he had been chosen for the job by now retired Army Gen. Mark Milley, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who clashed with Trump.
Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., called Loomer’s involvement in Haugh’s firing “outrageous.” She also touted the removal of Haugh’s deputy at the National Security Agency, Wendy Noble.
“Laura Loomer, a 9/11 truther, has no place anywhere near the White House,” Bennet wrote on X. “The inmates are running the asylum.”
Haugh’s dismissal followed the removal of several top officers from their posts in recent months, including Air Force Gen. Charles “CQ” Brown, the former Joint Chiefs chairman, Adm. Lisa Franchetti, the chief of naval operations, and the commandant of the Coast Guard, Adm. Linda Fagan.
Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he was alarmed and angered by Haugh’s termination and said it appeared to reinforce a pattern of firing military officers as a political loyalty test.
“In addition to the other military leaders and national security officials Trump has fired, he is sending a chilling message throughout the ranks: don’t give your best military advice or you may face consequences,” he said.
Reed described Haugh as “one of the most skilled, accomplished officers” in the military and said Trump’s purge of competent national security leadership has given a priceless gift to China, Russia, Iran and North Korea.
“Instead of listening to U.S. Cyber Command, Trump is listening to conspiracy theorists,” he said. “He is making our country less safe.”
Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., a former Air Force officer, also praised Haugh, saying he was doing a “superb job” at Cyber Command and the National Security Agency and his firing will set back cyber and intelligence operations.
“He was fired with no public explanation,” Bacon said.
Rep. John Garamendi, D-Calif., a member of the House Armed Services Committee, and Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, encouraged Republicans to speak out about the dismissal, though most did not.
“Stand up for at least the U.S. military,” Slotkin, a former CIA analyst who served three tours in Iraq, said in a speech on the Senate floor. “[Our military is] being treated like trash by Donald Trump, by everyone in this chamber who doesn’t stand up.”
Democrats on Friday said they were outraged to see the White House target Haugh while taking no action to hold top national security officials, including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, responsible for recently discussing military plans using a commercial group chat.
“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,” said Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee.
Houlahan said the public was owed an explanation.
“The American people deserve answers — now, including why General Haugh was relieved of his duties,” she said. “The case is not closed.”
shkolnikova.svetlana@stripes.com
Twitter: @svetashko
