DHS intelligence branch planning to shrink staffing by 75% amid elevated threat level
The planned cuts of about 750 at the Office of Intelligence and Analysis, which has a staff of around 1,000, are part of the department's efforts to remove what leadership considers redundant roles or those working on 'non-critical programs,' DHS said in a statement Thursday.
Some Democratic lawmakers asked DHS to pause the cuts, raising concerns over the elevated threat environment intelligence officials have reported.
The roughly 275 staffers left after the planned cuts will still be tasked with the mission established in the wake of the September 11, 2001, attacks on the US –- to provide intelligence related to threats to the homeland to local and state law enforcement as well as other government officials.
'Under President Trump's leadership, we focused on getting the Department of Homeland Security back to its core mission of prioritizing American safety and enforcing our laws,' the department said. 'DHS component leads have identified redundant positions and non-critical programs within the Office of Intelligence and Analysis.'
In a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, Democratic lawmakers on the House and Senate committees on homeland security implored the officials to reconsider the planned cuts.
'We urge you not to take this drastic and unilateral step and instead to consult with Congress about alternative ways to make I&A as effective and efficient as possible,' the lawmakers wrote in a letter Wednesday. 'Radically reducing I&A's workforce at headquarters or in the field would create dangerous and unnecessary security gaps and could again leave us in the dark about the threats that lie ahead.'
The letter continued, noting that 'at a time when DHS is rightly warning about an elevated threat environment from terrorists and cartels, we should be focused on plugging security gaps rather than senselessly creating new ones.'
The planned cuts may not be the last seen under the Trump administration to offices inside DHS.
'The Department is actively working to identify other wasteful positions and programs that do not align with DHS's mission to prioritize American safety and enforce our laws,' the agency said.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Boston Globe
22 minutes ago
- Boston Globe
Vice President JD Vance is on the road again to sell the Republicans' big new tax law
In West Pittston, Pennsylvania, Vance told attendees at an industrial machine shop that they should be able to keep more of their pay in their pockets, highlighting the law's new tax deductions on overtime. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Vance also discussed a new children's savings program called Trump Accounts and how the new law promotes energy extraction, while decrying Democrats for opposing the bill that keeps the current tax rates, which would have otherwise expired later this year. Advertisement The legislation cleared the GOP-controlled Congress by the narrowest of margins, with Vance breaking a tie vote in the Senate for the package that also sets aside hundreds of billions of dollars for Trump's immigration agenda while slashing Medicaid and food stamps. The vice president is also stepping up his public relations blitz on the bill as the White House tries to deflect attention away from the growing controversy over Jeffrey Epstein. Advertisement The disgraced financier killed himself, authorities say, in a New York jail cell in 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. Trump and his top allies stoked conspiracy theories about Epstein's death before Trump returned to the White House and are now reckoning with the consequences of a Justice Department announcement earlier this month that Epstein did indeed die by suicide and that no further documents about the case would be released. Questions about the case continued to dog Trump in Scotland, where he on Sunday announced a framework trade deal with the European Union. Asked about the timing of the trade announcement and the Epstein case and whether it was correlated, Trump responded: 'You got to be kidding with that.' 'No, had nothing to do with it,' Trump told the reporter. 'Only you would think that.' The White House sees the new law as a clear political boon, sending Vance to promote it in swing congressional districts that will determine whether Republicans retain their House majority next year. The northeastern Pennsylvania stop is in the district represented by Republican Rep. Rob Bresnahan, a first-term lawmaker who knocked off a six-time Democratic incumbent last fall. On Monday, Vance will be in the district of Democratic Rep. Emilia Sykes, who is a top target for the National Republican Congressional Committee this cycle. Polls before the bill's passage showed that it largely remained unpopular, although the public approves of some individual provisions such as increasing the child tax credit and allowing workers to deduct more of their tips on taxes.
Washington Post
23 minutes ago
- Washington Post
Vice President JD Vance is on the road again to sell the Republicans' big new tax law
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Vice President JD Vance is hitting his home state on Monday to continue promoting the GOP's sweeping tax-and-border bill. He will be in Canton, Ohio, to talk about the bill's 'benefits for hardworking American families and businesses,' according to his office. Aides offered little detail in advance about the visit, but NBC News reported that his remarks will take place at a steel plant in Canton, located about 60 miles south of Cleveland.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Vice President JD Vance is on the road again to sell the Republicans' big new tax law
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Vice President JD Vance is hitting his home state on Monday to continue promoting the GOP's sweeping tax-and-border bill. He will be in Canton, Ohio, to talk about the bill's 'benefits for hardworking American families and businesses,' according to his office. Aides offered little detail in advance about the visit, but NBC News reported that his remarks will take place at a steel plant in Canton, located about 60 miles south of Cleveland. The visit marks Vance's second trip this month to sell the package, filled with a hodgepodge of conservative priorities that Republicans have dubbed the 'One Big, Beautiful Bill' as the vice president becomes its chief promoter on the road. In West Pittston, Pennsylvania, Vance told attendees at an industrial machine shop that they should be able to keep more of their pay in their pockets, highlighting the law's new tax deductions on overtime. Vance also discussed a new children's savings program called Trump Accounts and how the new law promotes energy extraction, while decrying Democrats for opposing the bill that keeps the current tax rates, which would have otherwise expired later this year. The legislation cleared the GOP-controlled Congress by the narrowest of margins, with Vance breaking a tie vote in the Senate for the package that also sets aside hundreds of billions of dollars for Trump's immigration agenda while slashing Medicaid and food stamps. The vice president is also stepping up his public relations blitz on the bill as the White House tries to deflect attention away from the growing controversy over Jeffrey Epstein. The disgraced financier killed himself, authorities say, in a New York jail cell in 2019 as he awaited trial on sex trafficking charges. Trump and his top allies stoked conspiracy theories about Epstein's death before Trump returned to the White House and are now reckoning with the consequences of a Justice Department announcement earlier this month that Epstein did indeed die by suicide and that no further documents about the case would be released. Questions about the case continued to dog Trump in Scotland, where he on Sunday announced a framework trade deal with the European Union. Asked about the timing of the trade announcement and the Epstein case and whether it was correlated, Trump responded: 'You got to be kidding with that." 'No, had nothing to do with it,' Trump told the reporter. 'Only you would think that." The White House sees the new law as a clear political boon, sending Vance to promote it in swing congressional districts that will determine whether Republicans retain their House majority next year. The northeastern Pennsylvania stop is in the district represented by Republican Rep. Rob Bresnahan, a first-term lawmaker who knocked off a six-time Democratic incumbent last fall. On Monday, Vance will be in the district of Democratic Rep. Emilia Sykes, who is a top target for the National Republican Congressional Committee this cycle. Polls before the bill's passage showed that it largely remained unpopular, although the public approves of some individual provisions such as increasing the child tax credit and allowing workers to deduct more of their tips on taxes.
