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Julia Curlee

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Julia Curlee
EducationNational War College
American University
Occupationintelligence analyst

Julia Curlee is an American former intelligence officer with the CIA. She is a transgender woman and, in 2013, she became the first CIA officer to transition openly and continue serving the intelligence agency. Curlee served as a United States National Security Council director during the Biden Administration and the Second Trump Administration and was a personal daily briefer to Vice President Mike Pence. In 2025, she was fired by President Trump because she is transgender.

Early life and education

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Curlee grew up in Hawaii.[1] She is the granddaughter of an immigrant.[2] Curlee earned a master's degree from the National War College and a master's degree from American University.[3]

Career

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Curlee joined the CIA in 2007.[4] She served under four presidents, traveling to thirty countries and providing intelligence during three wars.[5] She also served in the CIA's China Mission Center.[3] In 2013, she became the first CIA officer to undergo a gender transition while continuing to work at the agency.[6][1]

In 2017, she was appointed to the United States National Security Council.[6] That same year, she wrote an essay, under the pseudonym Jenny Hall, for The Atlantic about how being an openly transgender person made her a better CIA agent.[7][5]

During the last year of President Donald Trump's first administration, Curlee was assigned to be a presidential daily briefer, regularly briefing Vice President Mike Pence on international matters and national security.[8][9] She also briefed the president on Air Force One and supported national security advisors including H. R. McMaster.[10]

Curlee served as a director of intelligence programs under President Joe Biden.[10]

She was removed from her position at the White House during the Second Trump Administration because she is transgender, and ultimately resigned from the CIA.[10][8] Her firing came immediately after far-right influencer Laura Loomer posted on X, "SCOOP: A transgender, Biden holdover who hates President Trump is still working in the NSC intel office."[6][5] Upon her firing from the White House, Curlee authored the essay The Wrong Kind of American for The Atlantic in August 2026.[8][11]

She is a fellow at Lawfare, a nonprofit publication covering national security.[10][12]

References

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  1. 1 2 Harris, Adam (August 17, 2026). "The Trump Administration Wanted Her Expertise, Just Not Her". The Atlantic. Retrieved September 1, 2026.
  2. ↑ Nawaz, Amna (August 20, 2026). "Ousted transgender CIA officer warns White House politics undermining U.S. intelligence". PBS. Retrieved September 1, 2026.
  3. 1 2 "Julia Curlee". Lawfare. Retrieved September 1, 2026.
  4. ↑ Wiggins, Christopher (August 17, 2026). "White House trusted a transgender CIA briefer with the most sensitive secrets until her identity went public". The Advocate. Retrieved September 1, 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 Villarreal, Daniel (August 17, 2026). "Trans CIA analyst explains how Laura Loomer got her fired from her job briefing Trump officials". LGBTQ Nation. Retrieved September 1, 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 "Julia Curlee, CIA officer fired by White House for being transgender". France24. August 26, 2026. Retrieved September 1, 2026.
  7. ↑ Hall, Jenny (March 20, 2017). "Coming Out as Transgender Made Me a More Effective CIA Officer". The Atlantic. Retrieved September 1, 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 Curlee, Julia (August 17, 2026). "The Wrong Kind of American: The Trump White House needed me—until the fact that I am trans became public". The Atlantic. Retrieved September 1, 2026.
  9. ↑ McRady, Rachel (August 18, 2026). "Trans CIA Agent Opens Up About Briefing Trump Admin amid Their LGBTQ+ Attacks, Including Mike Pence's Surprising Affirmation". People. Retrieved September 1, 2026.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Charen, Mona (August 29, 2026). "Inside Trump's National Security Dumpster Fire (w/ Julia Curlee)". The Bulwark. Retrieved September 1, 2026.
  11. ↑ Levin, Sam (September 15, 2026). "The trans CIA official ousted by Trump: 'We're a government crippled by its own decisions'". The Guardian. Retrieved September 15, 2026.
  12. ↑ Willrich, Sarah (August 29, 2026). "The Week That Was". Lawfare. Retrieved September 1, 2026.
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