Aaron Lucas, a former CIA officer, has been appointed as the acting director of the U.S. National Intelligence following the resignation of Tulsi Gabbard. President Donald Trump announced the change via social media, describing Lucas as a “highly respected individual.”
Lucas has previously expressed views that align closely with Trump, including skepticism towards the intelligence community’s stance on political correctness and the allegations surrounding Russian interference in the 2016 elections. During his confirmation hearings last year for the position of deputy to Gabbard, Lucas criticized the intelligence community, which comprises 18 agencies, calling it “aimless, bloated, risk-averse, and at times disconnected from its core mission.”
He commended both Trump and Gabbard for moving away from what he termed a “toxic political dogma” regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion, which he argued distracted from the intelligence community’s objectives. Lucas recounted an experience at a leadership seminar where he was informed that departmental effectiveness was secondary to promoting large-scale reforms in diversity and inclusion.
These statements, reported by Bloomberg, reflect Lucas’s alignment with contemporary conservative viewpoints and suggest a continuation of Gabbard’s approach, which often challenged Democratic narratives and sought to undermine bipartisan congressional findings regarding Russian election interference.
Lucas’s career includes a stint as an analyst at the Cato Institute before joining President George W. Bush’s administration as a lead speechwriter for U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick. He also served on the National Security Council during Trump’s first term. In his Senate testimony, Lucas noted that he had spent over 20 years working as a covert CIA operative, deliberately avoiding public attention and social media.
Additionally, he was chief of staff to Richard Grenell, who served as Trump’s ambassador to Germany and briefly as acting director of national intelligence. According to his Senate questionnaire, Lucas has made small political donations to various Republican candidates.
Background: Gabbard’s resignation was reported to be due to her husband’s illness, occurring at the end of June.
Aaron Lucas has been appointed acting director of U.S. National Intelligence, succeeding Tulsi Gabbard. His views align with conservative perspectives, particularly regarding the intelligence community's handling of political correctness and Russian election interference allegations.
Source: Bloomberg