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US Cyber Command Still Lacks a Leader – Months After Trump Fired Gen. Timothy Haugh
Chris Riotta (@chrisriotta) •
June 19, 2025
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told lawmakers Wednesday the White House and Pentagon were “in talks” to replace Gen. Timothy Haugh as the head of U.S. Cyber Command. (Image: Senate Armed Services Committee video feed)
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is under mounting pressure to fill the top post at Cyber Command and the National Security Agency, vacant for months since President Donald Trump fired Air Force Gen. Timothy Haugh after a White House meeting with far-right influencer Laura Loomer.
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The Pentagon chief told the Senate Armed Services committee Wednesday that the Department of Defense and White House were “in talks” to replace Haugh in the dual-hatted role, which leads defense operations for DOD information networks and a team of nearly 27,000 military and civilian staff in carrying out a wide range of military cyberspace operations.
He dodged questions over Loomer’s involvement in Haugh’s dismissal – telling one Democratic senator her “time is up” for questioning when she asked if he believed it was appropriate “for any social media personality to influence personnel decisions” – and failed to offer a timeline for nominating a replacement (see: Trump Fires NSA, Cyber Command Chief, Fueling Security Fears).
A source familiar with the committee’s timeline said the White House and Defense Department have yet to name a nominee. Several of the president’s cyber appointments are already stalled by procedural delays including an apparent FBI security backlog and a Senate hold on the nominee to lead the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency. Those obstacles could further prolong the vacancy at Cyber Command, the source said, and it remains unclear who the administration is considering for the role.
A former DOD cybersecurity official told ISMG the absence of clear leadership at the Pentagon, CISA and other key agencies hampers effective cyber operations and signals vulnerability to foreign adversaries. The former official, granted anonymity to discuss the administration’s cyber appointments, urged the White House to nominate a “true cybersecurity leader who can help instill confidence again” in national cyber defense.
Concern over a cybersecurity leadership vacuum comes as lawmakers and analysts warn that a federal hiring freeze and employment instability make it harder to recruit specialists needed to fill thousands of cyber roles across government. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said the Pentagon has more than 30,000 unfilled cyber positions, many of which remain vacant due to a civilian hiring freeze extended through July 15.
“These kids who have completed their degree actually can’t get a job at the DOD or in the intelligence community,” Gillibrand said. Graduates of the Pentagon’s Cyber Service Academy – aimed at expanding the cyber talent pipeline into federal government – are no longer able to enter federal service after completing the program, she said. “They’re either going to have to no longer serve – which was part of the program – or get employed somewhere else. We lose them.”
The lack of cyber leadership at Cyber Command comes amid a deepening loss of top cyber talent at CISA and other cybersecurity divisions across government. Staffers at the cyber defense agency tell ISMG the leadership vacuum has added to fears of job security and the ability to fulfill the agency’s mission of defending federal networks and the nation’s critical infrastructure sectors (see: Trump’s Pick to Lead CISA is Stuck in Confirmation Limbo).