Earlier than he assumed the highest roles at NSA and Cybercom, he served for 2 years as Deputy Commander of US Cyber Command. Throughout that point, he ran Cyber Command’s half of the “Russia Small Group,” a joint effort with the NSA to defend the 2018 midterm elections from Russian interference. Anne Neuberger, who later served within the Biden administration as a deputy nationwide safety adviser for cyber and rising applied sciences, ran the NSA’s half of that group.
Democratic lawmakers shortly condemned Haugh’s firing. Sen. Mark R. Warner of Virginia, the rating Democrat on the Senate Choose Committee on Intelligence, said, “At a time when the USA is going through unprecedented cyberthreats, because the Salt Typhoon cyberattack from China has so clearly underscored, how does firing him make Individuals any safer?”
Rating Member of the Home Intelligence Committee Jim Himes said, “I’m deeply disturbed by the choice to take away Common Haugh as Director of the Nationwide Safety Company. I’ve identified Common Haugh to be an trustworthy and forthright chief who adopted the regulation and put nationwide safety first — I worry that these are exactly the qualities that would result in his firing on this Administration. The Intelligence Group and the American folks want a right away clarification for this choice, which makes all of us much less protected.”