Director of National Intelligence (DNI) Tulsi Gabbard sent two criminal referrals to the Department of Justice (DOJ) for an alleged leak of classified information. There is also a third referral “on its way.”
What is Gabbard saying?
Gabbard said in a statement that there was a recent illegal leak to The Washington Post, and that classified intel was leaked for “partisan political purposes” to undermine President Trump’s agenda.
“Politicization of our intelligence and leaking classified information puts our nation’s security at risk and must end,” Gabbard announced. “Those who leak classified information will be found and held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”
Gabbard did not specify who she was accusing of leaking or what information was disclosed. She said last month that she would be aggressively pursuing leakers.
Is this connected to Pentagon investigations?
Gabbard’s announcement comes a few days after Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth fired some of his top advisers amidst an ongoing leak investigation.
Senior adviser Dan Caldwell, Deputy Chief of Staff Darin Selnick and Deputy Secretary Chief of Staff Colin Carroll were all fired. Hegseth’s Chief of Staff Joe Kasper changed roles.
Hegseth said in an interview on “Fox and Friends” that if the investigation discovers any of them leaked, they will be referred to the Justice Department for criminal prosecution.
“In this point, those folks who are leaking, who have been pushed out of the building, are now attempting to leak and sabotage the president’s agenda and what we’re doing. And that’s unfortunate,” Hegseth said.
What did the fired officials say in their defense?
In a joint statement, the three fired officials said they still hadn’t been told what they were being investigated for or if there was a leak investigation.
“We are incredibly disappointed by the manner in which our service at the Department of Defense ended. Unnamed Pentagon officials have slandered our character with baseless attacks on our way out the door,” they said in a joint statement.
“All three of us served our country honorably in uniform – for two of us, this included deployments to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. And, based on our collective service, we understand the importance of information security and worked every day to protect it,” the statement said.
Criminal referrals are made to the Justice Department by federal officials and members of Congress. The department has no obligation to take action.
