Thousands of federal agents are fleeing the Bureau, and the ones left behind are struggling in silence. The mass departure has triggered an unusual response: a support network of former intelligence officers determined to preserve what they say is an agency under systematic assault.
The FBI Support Network, launched by bureau alumni, offers legal aid, job placement, and mental health counseling to agents who have been fired, pushed out, or forced to resign. It also serves as a voice for current employees barred by their professional obligations from speaking publicly about conditions inside the agency.
Kayla Staph, a former cyber-crime investigator and advisory board member, described what she calls "moral injuries" afflicting agents pressured to abandon their core values. She resigned from the bureau's Norfolk field office in September, citing the diversion of resources toward mass deportation operations. "As someone who worked as a special agent and carried myself as someone who is very strong, I'm still a human," she told the Guardian. "We have challenges, just like everybody else."
The scale of the exodus is contested. The FBI has reported that roughly 2,800 agents have departed since January 2025, while the Office of Personnel Management cites a lower figure of 1,100 departures in the administration's first year. Either way, Staph notes that approximately one-third of those who left held leadership positions, which she views as intentional.
"Driving out so many leaders was by design, because it alleviates obstacles if someone is trying to use the FBI for their own purposes," she said. The network's members worry that removing experienced voices who understand the agency's traditions creates room for operational capture.
The support network includes Brian Driscoll, who served briefly as acting director before his dismissal for attempting to shield agents targeted over their involvement in investigations affecting the former president. In a launch video, Driscoll said the group aimed to offer assistance to "special agents, intelligence analysts and professional staff who are under attack."
Former FBI Director Robert Mueller, who died in March at 81, appears in archival footage for the announcement. Mueller's death drew a public celebration from Donald Trump, who posted that he was "glad he is dead" over Mueller's role as special counsel investigating alleged Russian coordination with Trump's 2016 campaign. In the video, Mueller speaks of the bureau's "unique mission" and "unique legacy" passed down through generations.
Steven Cash, executive director of the Steady State, an organization of retired national security professionals, characterized the network's formation as an alarm bell. "The fact that former FBI people need a support group tells you the devastating impact of the president's policies," Cash said. He warned that reshaping security services without institutional guardrails mirrors tactics of historical regimes like the KGB and Stasi.
Yet Cash expressed confidence in the bureau's institutional resilience. "The fact that they're organizing tells me that there's something still powerful about the FBI, and I have confidence that the history of that organization is going to permit them to resist destruction," he said.
Staph emphasized that the network speaks for those who cannot. "We're doing something that FBI personnel can't do from the inside. They're apolitical, so from the outside, we can speak out against the attacks on the bureau's dedicated work and raise awareness about the importance of its mission-critical work."
Author James Rodriguez: "A support group for purged federal agents is a extraordinary marker of institutional trauma, and it suggests the bureau's morale crisis runs deeper than any personnel shuffle."
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