The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for March 20, 2026
In March 2025, President Trump’s DOGE team cut the career workforce of the Cybersecurity Infrastructure and Security Agency, or CISA, by one third, including cyber threat intelligence and response experts. Do those cuts and the war with Iran put U.S. election cybersecurity at risk?
March 18th, Senators pressed fellow Senator and nominee for Department of Homeland Security Secretary, Markwayne Mullins, on whether he would restore cuts to staff and funding to CISA. He dodged those questions.
From February to November 2025, DOGE and then DHS Secretary Kristi Noem terminated an estimated 1,000 CISA employees, including specialists assisting state election officials in hardening election systems from foreign and domestic attack threats, and froze funding for those improvements. Under the second Trump administration, the agency has yet to have a permanent director.
Speaking to the Institute of New Economic Thinking last June, Dr. David Mussington, former head of Infrastructure Security at CISA, said Iran poses a real threat. QUOTE, “Right now, there’s real potential for Iranian cyber countermeasures against the U.S., given the current conflict involving Israel. In the recent past, Iranian cyber actors linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have targeted U.S. critical infrastructure and even election systems.” UNQUOTE.
During the Mullins hearing Wednesday, Michigan Senator Gary Peters stated, “This administration has also gutted our nation’s main cybersecurity agency, once again forcing out or reassigning highly talented personnel, slashing budgets and limiting the agency’s work to help private companies address significant cyberattacks and protect Americans from criminal hackers and support secure elections,” UNQUOTE.
Senator Mullins’ nomination advanced out of committee to the full Senate, March 19th.
We’ve linked to several past and recent reports on the gutting of CISA at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.
Today’s Links
Articles & Resources:
Institute for New Economic Thinking – (2025) Ex-CISA Official Warns: We’ve Gutted Cybersecurity—A Gift to Iran, China and RussiaUMBC Magazine – Federal shutdown deals blow to already hobbled cybersecurity agencyLawFare – Iran Will Retaliate in the U.S. We May Not See It in Time.The Cyber News/The Record – DHS nominee Mullin pressed on restoring CISA staffing
Tech Crunch – CISA replaces acting director after a bumbling year on the job
Fed Agent – Iran Conflict Raises Cybersecurity Concerns as DHS Shutdown, CISA Turmoil Continue
Related ADM Reports:
American Democracy Minute – (2025) Federal Agency CISA Helps States Harden Election Systems. It’s Now Under Attack by Its Own Administration
American Democracy Minute – (2025) DOGE Cuts 300 Experts From CISA’s Election Security Team and U.S. Agency Cybersecurity; Funding for State Cybersecurity Also Suspended
Groups Taking Action:
Center for Internet Security, IssueOne/Don’t Mess With US.org
Register or Check Your Voter Registration:
U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State
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