Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has reassigned members of a temporary task force created to address politicization within intelligence agencies, following reported missteps and mounting oversight pressure.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard has ended a task force she established last year to address alleged politicization within U.S. intelligence agencies, reassigning its personnel to other roles within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
According to Reuters, members of the Director’s Initiatives Group, known as DIG, have been redistributed across ODNI. The move follows reported internal missteps and increasing congressional scrutiny.
Gabbard said the group was designed from the outset as a temporary initiative.
“The Director’s Initiatives Group was created as a temporary effort to surge resources to deliver on high-priority projects with near-term deadlines, including Presidential Executive Orders,” Gabbard said.
“We are continuing to deliver results focused on our mission by maximizing the expertise and experience of those who were temporarily assigned to the Director’s Initiatives Group by assigning them to teams across ODNI,” she added.
Two sources cited by Reuters said the decision to dismantle DIG followed several errors. Among them was an incident in which the group allegedly linked a federal security worker to the placement of pipe bombs outside the Democratic and Republican party headquarters in Washington on the eve of the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riot.
An ODNI spokesperson denied any mistake occurred, stating the agency had a legal obligation to pass along allegations raised by a whistleblower and that legal counsel was involved in the process.
The task force’s closure also comes after Congress passed legislation in December requiring Gabbard to submit a classified report detailing DIG leadership, staffing and hiring practices. The report was due last month. Gabbard’s office missed that deadline, though a DNI spokesperson said the agency would still provide the requested information to lawmakers.
Supporters of DIG have pointed to actions such as the declassification of files related to the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and the implementation of executive orders issued by President Donald Trump shortly after he took office as examples of the group’s output.
Critics, however, viewed DIG’s efforts to root out politicization within the intelligence community as partisan in nature.
Another controversy involved the revocation of security clearances for 37 current and former officials, most of whom were Democrats. A source alleged that in the process, the name of a CIA officer serving undercover overseas was disclosed. An ODNI spokesperson denied that the officer’s identity was revealed, stating that no agency affiliation was identified.
The reassignment of DIG personnel effectively concludes the initiative, though ODNI officials maintain that its core objectives will continue through other teams within the intelligence apparatus.
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