Spurious Analysis: Trump fired DIRNSA. This is why I think he did it.

FROM A PILE OF CATS ON MY BED (Spurious Analysis Service) — The press is reporting that yesterday, on the advice of ultra-right-wing nutcase Laura Loomer, President-for-Life Donald Trump fired the Director of the National Security Agency, Air Force General Timothy Haugh, and Deputy DIRNSA Wendy Noble.

Just so you know, NSA is a strange organization in that the director doesn’t really run it. The Deputy, who is a VERY long-term civilian, is really in charge.

I suspect one of two reasons were the cause of this action.

Reason 1: Signalgate. All classified communications in the government are required to be encrypted through NSA-produced encryption systems. The part of NSA that makes encryption is probably the best in the world at this - after all, they’ve got the best code-breakers there are to test their work. Signal is NOT an NSA-produced system, so it can’t be used for this. If this is the reason, Haugh and Noble informed the White House, “look, you have got to stop doing this” and…well, no one tells Trump no. This is the least likely reason, but we can’t discount anything.

Reason 2: USSID 18. The National Security Agency is not allowed to spy on Americans. There’s an entire book, United States Signals Intelligence Directive 18, that tells you this. It’s the first thing you’re taught in intelligence school. You have annual required classes on it. After the Snowden scandal The Fort declassified it so anyone can read it. What I believe actually happened: Trump tasked the NSA with spying on Americans who don’t like him (which is pretty much everyone) and they refused to do it. Unfortunately for Trump, the acting DIRNSA, Army Lieutenant General William Hartman, and the acting Deputy, Sheila Thomas, are veteran Signals Intelligence people who are going to tell him the same thing.