Julia Curlee

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 Curlee grew up in Hawaii. She is the granddaughter of an immigrant. Curlee earned a master's degree from the National War College and a master's degree from American University. She served under four presidents, traveling to thirty give countries and providing intelligence during three wars. In 2013, she became the first CIA officer to undergo a gender transition while continuing to work at the agency. She also briefed the president on Air Force One and supported national security advisors including H. R. McMaster. 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." Upon her firing from the White House, Curlee authored the essay The Wrong Kind of American for The Atlantic in August 2026.