President Trump announced his intent on Wednesday to nominate a former aide to the House Intelligence Committee Republicans to be inspector general of the U.S. intelligence community.
Allen Souza, who is principal deputy senior director for Intelligence Programs at the National Security Council, was selected for the independent watchdog role, according to a White House statement.
The position has been held in an acting capacity by Thomas Monheim, the former general counsel of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, since April when the president fired Inspector General Michael Atkinson for what the ex-watchdog said he believed was reprisal for his handling of a whistleblower complaint that led to Trump’s impeachment. That ordeal and Trump’s dismissal of other inspectors general prompted calls for accountability by lawmakers, including Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley, who has established a reputation for defending agency watchdogs and whistleblowers.
The announcement on Wednesday comes roughly 41 days before the November election that will pit Trump against former Vice President Joe Biden. Intelligence has become a key issue after Russia was found to have interfered in the 2016 contest and as intelligence officials warn Russia and other countries are seeking to influence the 2020 election.
If his nomination becomes official, Souza would need to be confirmed by the Senate.
“Mr. Souza helps coordinate the intelligence programs of the United States Government, focusing on intelligence collection activities and covert action programs, and advises senior White House and NSC officials on intelligence and intelligence-related activities,” the White House said of Souza’s current role on the National Security Council, which is now led by Robert O’Brien.
Souza served as minority staff director and general counsel for the Republicans on the intelligence panel, led by Rep. Devin Nunes of California, from 2017 to April 2019. There, he “led a team of professional staff members in conducting oversight of the United States Intelligence Community, investigated a number of sensitive matters for the Committee, drafted critical pieces of national security legislation signed into law by the President, and worked directly with Members of Congress,” the White House statement said.
“On the Intelligence Committee, Allen Souza was an excellent staff leader who constantly pressed for rigorous oversight of the Intelligence Community,” Nunes told the Washington Examiner. “With deep knowledge of the complexities of producing intelligence, he will make a tough, fair, and thorough inspector general.”
Souza was the lead Republican lawyer for the House Intelligence Committee during the impeachment investigation, during which he corresponded with the lawyers for the so-called Ukraine whistleblower, assuring them the panel would maintain the official’s confidentiality. The whistleblower was never publicly identified, but some Republicans and conservative commentators stirred controversy by pushing for such a disclosure.
Mark Zaid, a veteran national security attorney who used to represent the Ukraine whistleblower, told the Washington Examiner that he recalled “professional and friendly” interactions with Souza.
“I look forward to working with him if he gets confirmed,” he said in an email Wednesday, adding, “pretty boring!”
Trump was impeached by the Democratic-led House in December on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress, but he was acquitted in February by the GOP-controlled Senate.
Souza was also previously a lawyer at the National Security Agency, “where he provided legal advice and oversight on signals intelligence operations conducted pursuant to Executive Order 12333 and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and provided legal support to NSA’s Office of Congressional Affairs. Mr. Souza has also served as a Special Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Maryland,” the White House said.
“Mr. Souza hails from North Carolina and is an Eagle Scout. He earned his LL.M. in National Security Law from the Georgetown University Law Center, his J.D. from the Charlotte School of Law, and his B.A. in Political Science and History from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,” the statement added.
