Tom Sylvester
Tom Sylvester | |
|---|---|
| Acting Director of the Central Intelligence Agency | |
| Assumed office January 20, 2025 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Bill Burns |
| Succeeded by | John Ratcliffe (nominee) |
| Deputy Director of CIA for Operations | |
| Assumed office 2023 | |
| Preceded by | David Marlowe |
Thomas Sylvester Jr. is an American intelligence official serving as the acting Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) since January 20, 2025. He is also the CIA's deputy director for operations.
Biography
[edit]Sylvester is the son of a Foreign Service officer, and he grew up overseas, attending junior high school in Norway.[1] He served as a United States Navy SEAL.[1] He later joined the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).[1] He is a veteran operations official for the CIA and served in several locations overseas, including in the Middle East.[1]
According to the CIA's podcast host's statement made in February 2024, Sylvester "played a central role in CIA’s efforts to help Ukraine defend itself as Russia’s full-scale invasion commenced" in 2022.[1] Sylvester rose to the position of deputy director for operations in the summer of 2023.[2] He replaced David Marlowe, who was hired in the Joe Biden administration.[2] In his position, Sylvester serves as head of the Directorate of Operations, thus being the leader of espionage for the agency.[2]
In February 2024, Sylvester appeared on the CIA's podcast, The Langley Files, speaking publicly for the first time.[1][2] There, he discussed the importance of human assets in espionage despite the "proliferation of cyberintelligence."[2]
On January 20, 2025, Sylvester was named by President Donald Trump as the acting Director of the CIA.[3][4] He was named the acting director as Trump's nominee for the position, John Ratcliffe, had not yet been confirmed by the Senate.[5]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f "FILE 014 - A Conversation with CIA's Spymaster in Chief". Central Intelligence Agency. February 28, 2024 – via Apple Podcasts.
- ^ a b c d e Barnes, Julian E. (February 28, 2024). "In an Age of Intercepts, the C.I.A. Makes the Case for Spies". The New York Times – via archive.ph.
- ^ "President Trump Announces Acting Cabinet and Cabinet-Level Positions". WhiteHouse.gov. January 20, 2025.
- ^ Volz, Dustin (January 21, 2025). "Trump Names Acting Spy Bosses". The Wall Street Journal.
- ^ Vakil, Caroline (January 20, 2025). "Here are the acting department heads in Trump's second term". The Hill.
Members of the Cabinet of the United States | ||
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| Cabinet members |  | |
| Cabinet-level members | ||
aacting Cabinet of Donald Trump | ||