Rogers: 'We're working our way through' process to split NSA-CYBERCOM roles

By Marjorie Censer / October 18, 2016 at 1:20 PM

Adm. Mike Rogers, the chief of U.S. Cyber Command and the National Security Agency, said today he is thinking through the "right time" and "right process" to split the roles he holds.

Speaking at a FedTalks event in Washington, Rogers said the idea behind the shared role was for CYBERCOM, in its early days, to harness the "insight, capabilities and knowledge" of NSA.

Now, he's asking: "Are the assumptions that we made still accurate? Have things changed? Is the environment different?"

The challenge in splitting the roles, Rogers added, is "what's the right time, what's the right process so that we do it in a way that enables both organizations to fulfill their missions with minimal risk?

"So we're working our way through that process," he continued. "In the end, this is a decision that the president of the United States is going to make, and we'll see where that process takes us."

Speaking on the same panel, Mike Rogers, the former Republican representative from Michigan, said the decision should be based on effectiveness, not on budgets.

"I heard the argument even when I was chairman [of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence] that it's muddling the resources," he said. "I don't believe that should be our problem."

Ultimately, the former congressman added, he's focused on "does Adm. Rogers have to talk to Director X at NSA to perform the same function he does today?"

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