NSA chief offered to resign

National Security Agency Director Keith Alexander offered to resign last summer, a senior official told The Wall Street Journal.

{mosads}Alexander made the offer in the wake of leaks by former contractor Edward Snowden about the scope of the NSA’s surveillance programs. But the Obama administration declined the offer, the Journal reported. 

Alexander is scheduled to retire this spring. 

Some officials had their confidence in Alexander shaken after the leaks, the Journal reported, but they thought that his resignation would only look like a victory for Snowden.

Several lawmakers are now pushing bills to rein in the NSA’s power and tighten oversight.