Tulsi Gabbard, the newly confirmed Director of National Intelligence, announced that efforts are underway to identify National Security Agency (NSA) employees involved in "obscene, pornographic, and sexually explicit" chat rooms. This follows reports that revealed logs from the NSA's Intelink messaging program.
The logs, which date back two years, contained explicit discussions on topics such as sex-change operations, fetishes, and orgies. The employees are under investigation for the misuse of an internal agency messaging board under the guise of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), officials say.
In one instance, employees labelling Gabbard as a Russian agent, a member of the MAGA "cult," and "fervently anti-queer."
A spokesperson for the agency said, "NSA hosts the Intelink service for the Intelligence Community. As the service provider, NSA takes very seriously the allegations in this reporting, and, if accurate, they would be violations of long-standing Intelligence Community policy. The Intelligence Community places great trust in those personnel that we authorise to access US Government systems, and in return we expect full compliance with all laws, policies and regulations which govern our work.”
Gabbard has confirmed on the X that a memo had been issued to identify the workers involved, with actions already underway. "Memo sent. We know who they are. Action is underway," she posted. The memo reportedly set a deadline for the workers by Friday.
Gabbard had previously condemned the chat rooms, stating, "This behaviour is unacceptable and those involved WILL be held accountable." She added, "These disgusting chat groups were immediately shut down when the President issued his Executive Order ending the DEI policies the Biden Administration was focused on. Our intelligence community must be focused on our core mission: ensuring the safety, security, and freedom of the American people.”