Washington Post Columnist Slams ‘Traitor’ Pentagon Source Leaking Hegseth Meetings to Paper
Marc Thiessen says the government official behind a classified Iran War report should be prosecuted The post Washington Post Columnist Slams ‘Traitor’ Pentagon Source Leaking Hegseth Meetings to Paper appeared first on TheWrap .
Washington Post columnist Marc Thiessen branded the unnamed government source who leaked details of Pentagon opposition to extending military operations in Iran a "traitor" who should face prosecution. Thiessen tweeted this sentiment on August 31, 2026, in response to his newspaper's exclusive reporting on senior military commanders' warnings to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Thiessen's tweet drew immediate controversy, with the Post itself defending its reporting and claiming that publishing classified information is not a crime. However, Thiessen declared that the source behind the story was a traitor and should be prosecuted. The Post's foreign-policy columnist, Josh Rogin, challenged Thiessen's stance, but Thiessen maintained his position, distinguishing between prosecuting the journalists who published the classified information and the government official who provided it.
The classified report, according to Thiessen, contained the objections of four senior military commanders to the prolonged deployment of personnel and equipment in the Middle East into 2027. These commanders argued that such deployments were detrimental to their ability to carry out other critical missions, such as homeland defense.
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