President Trump’s nominee to lead the National Security Agency and the U.S. Cyber Command pledged to senators at a confirmation hearing on Thursday that he would safeguard U.S. elections from foreign influence, even as the administration has weakened cyberattack protections.
Mr. Trump has eroded federal cyberdefenses, especially for elections, raising questions about the roles that the N.S.A. and the U.S. Cyber Command could play in protecting the vote. The nominee, Lt. Gen. Joshua M. Rudd, told lawmakers that he still saw a role for the agencies to shield elections from foreign influence.
General Rudd, of the Army, was chiefly asked about, and focused on, external threats to elections. He promised senators he would protect the vote from foreign influence campaigns.
“Any foreign attempt to undermine the American process of democracy, and at the center of that is our electoral process, as you all know far better than I do, has got to be safeguarded,” General Rudd said. “It’s absolutely a fundamental priority for the nation.”
Last year, the Trump administration eliminated nearly all of the government’s fortifications to protect elections from cyberattacks. Mr. Trump has taken issue with intelligence assessments that Russia interfered in the 2016 election and that the 2020 election was fair.
If confirmed, General Rudd would fill a role that opened in April, when Mr. Trump fired General Timothy D. Haugh. No reason was given for General Haugh’s dismissal, but Laura Loomer, a far-right activist, had called for his ouster in a meeting with Mr. Trump.
General Haugh was among the American officials most deeply involved in pushing back on Russia, dating to his work countering Moscow’s efforts to interfere in the 2016 election, which Mr. Trump refers to as the “Russia hoax.”
In an Armed Services Committee hearing to consider the nominations of General Rudd and Lt. Gen. Francis L. Donovan of the Marine Corps, Mr. Trump’s nominee to lead the U.S. Southern Command, the generals were particularly tight-lipped. Their laconic answers drew criticism.
“It’s OK for you two gentlemen to tell us how you feel,” Senator Roger Wicker, Republican of Mississippi and chairman of the Armed Services Committee, told them. “We realize that you haven’t been confirmed yet, but so far we really haven’t received any answers about how you feel about the responsibilities you’re about to take on. It’s OK to tell us, and actually it would be helpful.”
Mr. Wicker’s prodding didn’t have the intended effect.
If confirmed to lead the U.S. Southern Command, General Donovan would oversee all U.S. military operations in Central and South America at a critical moment. He avoided answering questions about what strategies he would use to curb drug trafficking or whether he would review the legality of the recent lethal strikes on boats that the Trump administration has said were being used to smuggle drugs.
General Donovan would be stepping into his role as thousands of troops have amassed in the Caribbean after the U.S. captured Venezuela’s leader on Jan. 3 and conducted dozens of strikes on boats, killing at least 123 people. He would fill the position vacated by Adm. Alvin Holsey, who stepped down last month after defense officials said he raised concerns about the boat strikes in the Caribbean.
General Rudd, for his part, skirted repeated questions from senators on both sides of the aisle about whether the country should pursue an aggressive cyberdeterrence policy as the Trump administration is weighing a substantial shift in that direction.
General Rudd told senators that the decision to launch cyberattacks was “not necessarily that of U.S. Cyber Command.” But he added that “certainly we have to bring the fight to the enemy.”
Senator Angus King, the Maine independent, took issue with his repeatedly sidestepping questions. “I’m confused because you’re nominated to be the top cyber officer in the United States government, and you don’t have any opinion on cyber policy or what’s important,” Mr. King said. “Are you simply a lever puller?”
General Rudd said he would have a better answer after the Senate confirmed him to lead the N.S.A. and U.S. Cyber Command.
“I think it would be most appropriate if — once confirmed, if confirmed — I take the time to make an assessment, get the inputs of those organizations, and provide the best military advice through the department and work with this committee,” he said.
Adam Sella covers breaking news for The Times in Washington.
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