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WSJ: Polygraph Threats, Leaks and Infighting: The Chaos Inside Hegseth's Pentagon [View all]
WSJ - Polygraph Threats, Leaks and Infighting: The Chaos Inside Hegseth’s Pentagon (Gift Link)
Defense secretary has chastised top military officers and staffers as he seeks to quiet a storm he helped create
By Nancy A. Youssef, Alexander Ward, Vera Bergengruen
Updated April 24, 2025 6:13 pm ET
WASHINGTON—Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was rattled.
Word had leaked that he was planning a classified briefing for Elon Musk on China, a revelation that infuriated President Trump and raised alarms inside the Pentagon given Musk’s business ties to Beijing.
“I’ll hook you up to a f—ing polygraph!” Hegseth shouted at Adm. Christopher Grady, the then-acting chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, according to two people familiar with the exchange. Hegseth demanded proof that Grady hadn’t leaked news of the March 21 briefing.
Grady was never subjected to a polygraph, and Hegseth would go on to accuse a number of other people for the leak, including Lt. Gen. Doug Sims, the Joint Staff director, whom Hegseth also threatened with a polygraph test.
But for Hegseth, the episode marked a turning point in an already rocky tenure. Coming just days after revelations that the former Fox News host had shared sensitive military information in unsecured group chats on Signal, the leaks deepened his frustrations and eroded his trust in his close circle of advisers, the officials say.
/snip
Defense secretary has chastised top military officers and staffers as he seeks to quiet a storm he helped create
By Nancy A. Youssef, Alexander Ward, Vera Bergengruen
Updated April 24, 2025 6:13 pm ET
WASHINGTON—Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was rattled.
Word had leaked that he was planning a classified briefing for Elon Musk on China, a revelation that infuriated President Trump and raised alarms inside the Pentagon given Musk’s business ties to Beijing.
“I’ll hook you up to a f—ing polygraph!” Hegseth shouted at Adm. Christopher Grady, the then-acting chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, according to two people familiar with the exchange. Hegseth demanded proof that Grady hadn’t leaked news of the March 21 briefing.
Grady was never subjected to a polygraph, and Hegseth would go on to accuse a number of other people for the leak, including Lt. Gen. Doug Sims, the Joint Staff director, whom Hegseth also threatened with a polygraph test.
But for Hegseth, the episode marked a turning point in an already rocky tenure. Coming just days after revelations that the former Fox News host had shared sensitive military information in unsecured group chats on Signal, the leaks deepened his frustrations and eroded his trust in his close circle of advisers, the officials say.
/snip
Dude's a psycho!
3 replies
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