Hayden began his military career in 1969 after completing the Reserve Officer Training Corps program. He has held senior staff positions at the Pentagon, the National Security Council and the US Embassy in Sofia, Bulgaria. He also served as deputy chief of staff for United Nations Command and US Forces Korea.

 

From May 1993 to October 1995, Hayden served as director of the Intelligence Directorate for the US European Command in Stuttgart, Germany. Hayden was commander of the Air Intelligence Agency and director of the Joint Command and Control Warfare Center, both headquartered at Kelly Air Force Base, Texas, from January 1996 to September 1997.

 

From March 1999 to April 2005, Hayden served as director of the National Security Agency and chief of the Central Security Service (NSA/CSS) at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland. He was then promoted to first principal deputy director of National Intelligence, during which time he received his fourth star, making him the highest-ranking intelligence officer in the military.

 

While heading the NSA, Hayden oversaw the implementation of the government’s secret, illegal taping of telephone calls without warrants from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. During his nomination hearings, Hayden defended his actions by stating that he had relied upon legal advice from the White House which insisted the President had the power under Article Two of the Constitution to order the wire-tapping without need of warrants or permission from Congress.