A top Republican senator is proposing a sweeping overhaul of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, slashing the workforce of an organization that has expanded since it was created in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks.
Under a bill by Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas, the Republican chair of the Intelligence Committee, the ODNI’s staff of about 1,600 would be capped at 650, according to a senior Senate aide familiar with the proposed legislation.
ODNI’s workforce was about 2,000 in January, but National Intelligence Director Tulsi Gabbard has already overseen a reduction of about 20% as part of the Trump administration’s drive to shrink the federal workforce. The reduction in the staff Gabbard oversees could weaken her role in the intelligence bureaucracy at a time when she appears to have fallen out of favor with the White House.
The Senate staffer, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that Cotton and other Republican senators have been working on the proposed reform for months and that their effort preceded Gabbard’s appointment.
Cotton declined to comment. An ODNI official said Gabbard and her staff have been holding discussions for months with congressional staff members about plans for extensive reforms and cuts at the agency.