China Sees Gaps in U.S. Defenses, Ousted National Security Official Says
Gen. Timothy Haugh, the former head of both the N.S.A. and U.S. Cyber Command, said there were weaknesses in American cyberdefenses that the Chinese government was trying to exploit. While cybersecurity and cloud computing firms are trying to improve their defenses, China is constantly looking for vulnerabilities, areas that neither kinds of firms are focusing enough of their attention on.
China, General Haugh said, is trying to exploit the 'seams' in the defenses.
General Haugh was forced out of his positions in April after Laura Loomer, a right-wing conspiracy theorist and Trump adviser, accused him — without evidence — of disloyalty. In a social media post, Ms. Loomer said General Haugh had been chosen by Gen. Mark A. Milley, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who was critical of Mr. Trump and whom she called a traitor.
Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers lamented General Haugh's dismissal. Representative Jim Himes of Connecticut, the senior Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, said General Haugh's firing made the country less safe. Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the former Republican leader, said he 'couldn't figure out' what the Trump administration wanted in its senior national security figures.
In his first interview since being fired, General Haugh seemed reluctant to talk in detail about his dismissal, saying only that he served at the pleasure of President Trump.
'I don't and did not expect an explanation, and from the second I was told I was no longer serving in the role, the focus shifts to the leaders the president has put in the capacity,' General Haugh said.
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