A Washington, D.C., lawyer who helped raise at least $50,000 for President Barack Obama's 2012 campaign has been appointed as general counsel for the National Security Agency,
The Daily Beast reports.
The Beast says the lawyer, Glenn Gerstell, also helped raise or donate upward of $112,000 for candidates running for federal office between 1990 and 2012.
Matthew Waxman, who worked in the George W. Bush administration, was originally tapped for the position,
the Beast reported in May. But he withdrew his name,
Gerstell was appointed to the National Infrastructure Advisory Committee in 2011, which falls under the Department of Homeland Security. His LinkedIn profile says the job was a "part-time volunteer position."
Since February 2013, Gerstell has served as a commissioner on the District of Columbia Homeland Security Commission.
In his new job at the NSA, Gerstell would work directly with director Admiral Michael Rogers, reports The Daily Beast.
Gerstell is a managing partner at Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP, where he has worked since 1976.
Rajesh De was appointed the NSA's general counsel in 2012 but resigned from his position in March to take a job in the private sector.
The agency's deputy general counsel, Teisha Anthony, has been serving as acting general counsel in the meantime.
The NSz has been beset with trouble over a number of issues, including
domestic spying practices and the
Edward Snowden fiasco, in recent years.