In 2013, Julia Curlee became the first CIA officer to transition openly and keep serving the agency.She felt more effective at her job living as the person she always believed she was—and years ago wrote about her experience under a pseudonym in The Atlantic. Her performance proved her effectiveness: She became the daily intelligence briefer for Vice President Pence during the first Trump administration and a director on the National Security Council in both the Biden administration and the second Trump term.
Less than 70 days after the president returned to office in 2025, Julia was fired from the White House without explanation. She returned to the CIA and, over time, began to feel a lack of support at the agency in an administration that was openly hostile to transgender people. Julia left her dream job with the federal government earlier this year. This week on Radio Atlantic, she is telling her full story for the first time.
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00:00 Introduction
00:51 Two Dreams, One Life
03:20 Why Speak Out Now
05:06 Being Transgender in the CIA
09:16 Briefing Vice President Mike Pence
16:04 Service After January 6
17:44 Purged and Targeted
26:59 Assault on Expertise
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