White House rejects Pentagon’s pick to head US elite hacking force
The White House has recently rejected the Pentagon's pick to head the National Security Agency and US Cyber Command, Politico reports.
The White House has recently rejected the Pentagon's pick to head the National Security Agency (NSA) and US Cyber Command, Politico reports.
According to the publication, which cited three people familiar with the matter, the White House has decided against moving forward with the Defense Department’s recommendation to nominate Army Lt. Gen. Richard Angle as director of the NSA and head of US Cyber Command, the nation's first line of defense in cyberspace.
Angle is a US Army lieutenant general who has served as the commander of Allied Special Operations Forces Command and Special Operations Command Europe. He was supported by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, according to Politico’s sources.
It remains unclear why the White House decided against his nomination. Angle, however, has less background in cybersecurity and intelligence than recent heads of the NSA.
In April, US President Donald Trump abruptly fired the previous director of the NSA, who also headed US Cyber Command, General Timothy Haugh.
Along with him, his top deputy, Wendy Noble, was also dismissed. The reports appeared soon after far-right activist Laura Loomer entered the Oval Office armed with opposition research against several staffers who were supposedly sabotaging Trump.
NSA Director Tim Haugh and his deputy Wendy Noble have been disloyal to President Trump. That is why they have been fired.
undefined Laura Loomer (@LauraLoomer) April 4, 2025
As a Biden appointee, General Haugh had no place serving in the Trump admin given the fact that he was HAND PICKED by General Milley, who was accused of… pic.twitter.com/SFXmog5b44
Neither Haugh nor Noble were told why they were being fired, only that “your services are no longer required.”