Overview
- Two U.S. officials told CBS News that Gorka, a national security aide to President Trump, wants to be the next director of the National Counterterrorism Center.
- The director runs the government’s counterterror hub, which pulls together threat analysis and sets priorities across agencies, and people who spoke to the Washington Post said the role carries broad authority.
- Marine veteran Joe Weirsky is serving as acting director, and the White House said any nominee announcements will come from the president with a Senate vote required for confirmation.
- The post opened after Joe Kent resigned over the Iran war, and CBS reports the FBI is investigating him for alleged classified leaks that Gorka has called disgraceful.
- Gorka, who previously struggled to obtain a security clearance, has pushed to broaden terrorism definitions to include far-left groups, and the White House order labeling antifa a domestic terror group lacks a clear basis in federal law, according to the Washington Post.