Security News > 2020 > November > Michael Ellis as NSA General Counsel

Over at Lawfare, Susan Hennessey has an excellent primer on how Trump loyalist Michael Ellis got to be the NSA General Counsel, over the objections of NSA Director Paul Nakasone, and what Biden can and should do about it.

The NSA general counsel is not a Senate-confirmed role.

Unlike the general counsels of the CIA, Pentagon and Office of the Director of National Intelligence, all of which require confirmation, the NSA's general counsel is a senior career position whose occupant is formally selected by and reports to the general counsel of the Department of Defense.

It's an odd setup - ­and one that obscures certain realities, like the fact that the NSA general counsel in practice reports to the NSA director.

The Pentagon general counsel has the final call in making a selection.

News URL

https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2020/11/michael-ellis-as-nsa-general-counsel.html