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Gabbard ousts CIA's top Russia expert days after Trump-Putin Alaska summit

Publicly naming the officer in a clearance memo may have blown an active undercover CIA identity·August 27, 2025

Days after President Trump's summit with Vladimir Putin at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska on August 15, 2025, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard abruptly revoked the security clearance of the CIA's senior-most Russia expert — an officer who had helped brief Trump's team before the meeting. By publicly posting the officer's name in a memo listing 37 security clearance revocations, Gabbard may have blown the cover of a CIA officer operating undercover at the time. The CIA received no advance notice of the action. Former colleagues say the analyst "did most of the prep for the Putin summit and to this day has no idea why her clearance was removed." CIA Director John Ratcliffe's office said both leaders were "committed to eradicating the politicization of intelligence," declining to directly criticize Gabbard.

Key facts

On August 19, 2025, DNI Tulsi Gabbard posted a memo on X publicly naming 37 current and former national security officials whose security clearances she was revoking. One of them was the CIA's senior-most Russia and Eurasia analyst — an officer who was operating under cover at the time.

The Trump-Putin Alaska summit took place on August 15, 2025, at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson in Anchorage. The meeting lasted three and a half hours instead of the announced six, ended without a formal agreement, and excluded Ukraine from the talks.

The ousted CIA analyst had completed intensive preparation work for the Trump-Putin summit and was scheduled for a new CIA assignment in Europe. A former colleague said she 'did most of the prep for the Putin summit and to this day has no idea why her clearance was removed.'

Gabbard's office failed to properly coordinate the clearance revocations with the CIA before the announcement. A U.S. official confirmed 'ODNI didn't meaningfully consult with the agency,' and the CIA was reportedly unaware the employee held covert status at the time.

Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Mark Warner called Gabbard's actions 'arbitrary and unilateral' and introduced bipartisan legislation to prohibit political abuse of the security clearance process. Warner said he has 'no confidence that Gabbard is the right person' to lead intelligence reform.