Trump nominee to lead nation's cyber agency removed from post as senior DHS adviser

Sean Plankey, the Department of Homeland Security senior adviser and Trump nominee to lead the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, was escorted out of the U.S. Coast Guard headquarters late Monday and had his access badge removed, according to sources familiar with the matter. The nominee to lead the cyber defense agency has left his role at DHS, though circumstances behind the sudden move remain unclear. In:

Sean Plankey, the Department of Homeland Security senior adviser and Trump nominee to lead the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, was escorted out of the U.S. Coast Guard headquarters late Monday and had his access badge removed, according to sources familiar with the matter. The nominee to lead the cyber defense agency has left his role at DHS, though circumstances behind the sudden move remain unclear.

Plankey, a retired U.S. Coast Guard officer, formerly served as senior adviser to the homeland security secretary for the Coast Guard, a role he held while awaiting Senate action on his nomination to lead CISA, the agency responsible for protecting federal civilian networks and U.S. critical infrastructure from cyber threats.

A Coast Guard spokesperson referred inquiries to DHS. "We have no personnel matters to announce at this time," a DHS spokesperson said. CBS News has also reached out to CISA for comment. 

Florida Sen. Rick Scott placed a hold on Plankey's 2025 nomination, and at the end of the legislative session last year, his nomination expired, along with other nominations that did not receive a Senate vote. President Trump renominated Plankey in January after his earlier nomination stalled in the Senate. But multiple people familiar with the process said the renomination was unintended and occurred as part of what one source described as an administrative error in a broader list of nominations submitted by the White House. 

People familiar with internal dynamics at CISA said Plankey had longstanding tensions with Madhu Gottumukkala, who served as the agency's acting director until he was replaced days ago. Gottumukkala previously worked in South Dakota and has close ties to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, the sources said.