UNCLASSIFIED

February 5, 2021

General Paul Nakasone

Director
National Security Agency
Washington, D.C.

Dear Director Nakasone:

On January 20, 2021—within hours of President Biden taking office—the National

Security Agency placed General Counsel Michael J. Ellis on administrative leave, pending a
Department of Defense Inspector General (DoD IG) investigation. As we understand it, this
investigation is focused on: 1) the circumstances of Mr. Ellis’s appointment, and 2) alleged—
but unspecified—mishandling of classified information.

This investigation (and the placement of Mr. Ellis on administrative leave) followed
an intense pressure campaign by liberal commentators 1 and elected Democrats 2 to remove
Mr. Ellis. It also follows an extremely troubling pattern: the blackballing of staffers who
worked for President Trump’s administration, including the creation of blacklists meant to
damage the careers of Trump staffers. 3

Moreover, all indications show that the proper process was followed in Mr. Ellis’s
case without regard to political considerations. The selection process for NSA General
Counsel began in January 2020 and lasted nearly a year. During that process, and prior to the
involvement of any political appointees, Mr. Ellis was found to be qualified for the position
by a panel of career attorneys. He was subsequently interviewed by a panel that included a
career intelligence lawyer and was selected for the position in November 2020. Following his

1
Susan Hennessey, “How Did a Trump Loyalist Come to Be Named NSA General Counsel—And What Should
Biden Do About it?” Lawfare, November 13, 2020, https://www.lawfareblog.com/how-did-trump-loyalist-come-
be-named-nsa-general-counsel-and-what-should-biden-do-about-it.
2
Letter from Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Acting Secretary Christopher Miller, January 17, 2021,
20210117_Letter_ActingSecretaryMiller.pdf (speaker.gov).
3
“The Lincoln Blacklist,” Wall Street Journal, January 12, 2021,
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-lincoln-blacklist-11610494450.

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selection, Mr. Ellis passed a polygraph examination and was granted a security clearance by
NSA.

Simply put, there is no indication of any improper influence in the selection process.

Elected Democrats and their media allies have also justified this treatment of Mr. Ellis
by pointing to his supposed lack of qualifications. However, Mr. Ellis is in fact more
qualified than either of his Obama Administration predecessors. Mr. Ellis is an Ivy League
graduate who has served in all three branches of government and the United States military—
as a judicial law clerk, a House Intelligence Committee staffer, a White House official, and
since 2007, as a Naval Reserve intelligence officer. Most significantly, Mr. Ellis has worked
continuously with the intelligence professionals at the NSA since 2013.

In contrast, the two individuals who served as NSA GC during the Obama
Administration had nowhere near the level of intelligence experience Mr. Ellis does—but they
both had strong Democratic political connections. The GC from 2015 to 2020 had served as a
campaign bundler for former President Obama, while the GC from 2012 to 2015 had served
as President Obama’s Staff Secretary. 4

Given this history, the accusations that Mr. Ellis is a “political” appointee are spurious
and border on bad faith. If this were the new standard, the absurd result would be to remove
every career official with Congressional experience from the Executive branch.

Despite all this, NSA refused to place Mr. Ellis in his position until ordered to do so
by the Acting Secretary of Defense. The sad reality is that NSA—at the behest of elected
Democrats and the leftist media—has politicized this career intelligence position. Last week,
President Biden was widely lauded by those same media entities for calling for “unity” in
American governance. But this troubling episode—where NSA has purged a career
intelligence official because of political considerations—indicates the “unity” may only be
between elected Democrats and government bureaucrats. These circumstances would do a
tremendous disservice to the American people.

We therefore demand that the DoD IG investigation be expanded to include the

circumstances of Mr. Ellis’s placement on administrative leave, as well as any actions taken

4
“Biden's NSA May Face Legal Fight Over Trump-Installed Lawyer,” Defense One, January 19, 2021,
https://www.defenseone.com/policy/2021/01/trumps-nsa-pick-sets-biden-high-profile-personnel-fight/171495/.

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by you to avoid placing Mr. Ellis in his position. This retribution against President Biden’s
perceived political enemies—and the real-world effects on professionals who continue to
serve their country honorably—has no place in the United States of America.

Sincerely,

______________________________ ______________________________
Devin Nunes Ken Calvert
Member of Congress Member of Congress

______________________________ ______________________________
Michael R. Turner Brad Wenstrup
Member of Congress Member of Congress

______________________________ ______________________________
Chris Stewart Rick Crawford
Member of Congress Member of Congress

______________________________ ______________________________
Elise Stefanik Robert B. Aderholt
Member of Congress Member of Congress

______________________________ ______________________________
Mario Diaz-Balart John Carter
Member of Congress Member of Congress

Cc: The Honorable Lloyd J. Austin, Secretary of Defense

Mr. Sean O’Donnell, Acting Inspector General, Department of Defense

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