The unannounced visit suggests Musk’s drive to slash the federal workforce now extends to a secretive agency known as the "puzzle palace" for its famed codebreaking abilities.

Summary

Elon Musk visited NSA headquarters on Wednesday, meeting with its chief Gen. Timothy Haugh days after posting “The NSA needs an overhaul” on X.

This marks Musk’s first confirmed visit to an intelligence agency since leading the Trump administration’s workforce firings.

Intelligence agencies, including the NSA, are facing pressure to reduce civilian staff by 5-8% by June under Defense Department directives.

The NSA is considering early retirement and buyout options while other agencies like the CIA have already begun terminating newer employees.

Intelligence officials and Democrats have warned against hasty staffing cuts that could damage national security capabilities.

  • givesomefucks@lemmy.worldEnglish
    24·
    2 months ago

    Intelligence agencies, including the NSA, are facing pressure to reduce civilian staff by 5-8% by June under Defense Department directives.

    One way media keeps fucking this up is confusing staff with staffing.

    If an agency has 10% openings (lots are worse) then reducing staffing by 8% makes them “only” 2% understaffed without letting a single employee go.

    We shouldn’t be letting Elmo near any federal agency, and agencies fight hard to get positions added which is why so many are “understaffed”. They just haven’t had time to fill new positions.

    But just like the recent court case found: OPM can only recommend things to agencies. As much as I hate Elmo, any cuts are because agency heads are making them. Which is why agency heads resigning is stupid.

    Stay, fight, make them waste time going thru the system to fire you

    Be a fucking shield.

  • Asafum@feddit.nl
    23·
    2 months ago

    It really is absolutely astounding that we’ve just let Musk be the president…

    Trump is too busy golfing and grifting to do anything but tweet hateful bullshit and talk about annexation…

  • gravitas_deficiency@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    13·
    2 months ago

    I am just completely, absolutely floored that apparently not a fucking soul in any of the alphabet agencies is lifting a finger to do fucking ANYTHING to even mitigate the damage that’s being done.

    Or: I guess I’m just hoping they’ve contingency planned so completely thoroughly that it’s just that airtight, and they’re only going to step in when something truly existential is about to happen (e.g. absolutely idiotic nuclear exchange/invasion of ally (perhaps? Hopefully that’s a line for them?)).

    It is fucking WILD that I’m pinning my hopes our intelligence agencies pulling a fucking coup.

    But at the same time, the FBI is lost. If there’s any real holdouts at this point, imo, it’s gotta be in the NSA and CIA.

  • ShittyBeatlesFCPres@lemmy.worldEnglish
    101·
    2 months ago

    He probably thinks Palantir can seamlessly replace the NSA and not have any of those pesky Constitutional rights to worry about. (Not that the NSA gives a shit about the Constitution but they at least have to pretend.)