Overview
- Multiple current and former Pentagon officials told CNN that Pete Hegseth halted a routine damage review and instead pushed to polygraph suspected leakers.
- The reported focus on internal leak investigations created a chilling effect within the Department of Defense, according to those officials.
- Raw Story reports the Pentagon has no plans to conduct an additional assessment beyond the inspector general’s evaluation.
- The Dec. 2 DoD inspector general report found Hegseth used a personal device and Signal to share non-public details of a Yemen strike in violation of policy and that the disclosures could have risked U.S. forces.
- Investigators cited missing records and issued a narrow recommendation for CENTCOM, while a companion report urged secure messaging alternatives and training, fueling calls in Congress for a fuller review.