Ellen Nakashima and Hannah Natanson report for the Washington Post in an article titled, “FBI, national security agencies using polygraphs for ‘leak’ hunts.” Excerpt:
National security agencies across the Trump administration are ramping up investigations into alleged leaks to the news media, in some cases using polygraph tests that current and former officials say are creating a climate of fear and intimidation.
At FBI Director Kash Patel’s direction, the bureau in recent weeks has begun administering polygraph tests to identify the source of information leaks, an FBI spokesperson said. The new use of polygraphs at the bureau, which are commonly known as “lie detector” tests, has not been previously reported.
“The seriousness of the specific leaks in question precipitated the polygraphs, as they involved potential damage to security protocols at the bureau,” said the spokesperson, who declined to elaborate.
The ramp-up has been bolstered by Attorney General Pam Bondi’s new legal guidelines that allow the Justice Department to subpoena reporters’ personal communications and broaden the scope of potential criminal prosecution to leaks of not just classified material, but also “privileged and other sensitive” information that the administration says is “designed to sow chaos and distrust” in the government.
“People are trying to keep their heads down,” said one former FBI field office head, who like others interviewed for this article spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. “Morale’s in the toilet. … When you see people who are being investigated, or names [of agents who worked on Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot cases] being passed over to the DOJ, it’s what the f—?”
At the Pentagon, embattled Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has threatened the use of polygraphs, according to current and former officials, and has demanded that some senior department officials be administered lie detector exams, the Wall Street Journal has reported.
The sense of dread is palpable. Some officials who have left the government under a buyout and might normally feel less constrained about talking to the news media are refusing to speak while they are officially still on the payroll. Even contractors with security clearances say they can’t take any chances in case they are asked in their next polygraph test whether they have had contact with journalists.
“It’s a toxic environment,” said one official with a top-secret clearance. “First, you’ve got the insecurity of not knowing whether you’re going to get fired or not. Then there’s the witch hunt to find the whistleblowers who are exposing the ineptitude and bad management of agencies. They’re trying to silence those who do not follow the party line.”
Read the rest of the article here.
Reporting for Reuters, Ryan Patrick Jones and Kanishka Singh confirm the Washington Post‘s reporting about the FBI’s use of polygraphs in an article titled, “FBI starts using polygraph tests in internal leak investigations.”
With respect to the FBI’s use of polygraphs in an attempt to identify leakers, it is noteworthy that FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino, speaking last year as a political commentator before his appointment to his current position, publicly advocated expanded reliance on polygraph screening. FBI Director Kash Patel, by contrast, appears to have remained publicly silent on polygraph policy both before and since his appointment as Director.
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Hegseth needs to be fired. Having an Atlantic editor on a text chain is inexcusable, and then giving the editor a head’s up on an impending military action is incompetent. Trying to dig out leakers with pseudo-science devices, while ignoring blatant breaches, is absolutely stunning. Hegseth needs to get help with his drinking problem and get out of the government.