Washington Post Columnist Calls Source for Iran War Report a “Traitor”

He was referring to the confidential source behind the Post’s exclusive report on senior military leaders’ objections to prolonged large-scale operations against Iran. The report relied on a classified August 14 edition of the Secretary of Defense Orders Book, which recorded four senior commanders warning that extending the Iran deployment would degrade U.S. readiness for other missions.

Raw Story

The Washington Post story, authored by Alex Horton and Tara Copp, described “non-concurs” from the heads of U.S. European Command, Pacific Command, Southern Command and the Navy’s top admiral. These leaders disagreed with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s order to sustain forces in the Iran conflict through 2027, arguing that doing so would weaken the military’s ability to address threats elsewhere, including homeland defense. Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell labeled the publication of the classified assessment a crime and a betrayal of the force. The Post responded that its reporting was based on reliable sourcing and protected by constitutional rights, calling the claim that publishing the material was criminal “both incorrect and irresponsible.”

Raw StoryThe WrapNew York PostWashington Post columnist called the Post’s own source a ‘traitor’ over a Pentagon report, then clashed publicly with his colleague over the demand

• Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell: Publishing the classified assessment “is a crime” and “a betrayal of the force.”

Raw Story

• Washington Post statement: The newspaper is confident in its reporting, sourcing, and the constitutional protections that allow news organizations to publish information in the public interest; the assertion that such publication is a crime is “both incorrect and irresponsible.”

The Wrap

• Josh Rogin, Washington Post foreign-policy columnist, pointed to the newspaper’s defense after Thiessen’s tweet, while Thiessen clarified that his condemnation targeted the government official who leaked the material, not the journalists who published it.

Washington Post columnist called the Post’s own source a ‘traitor’ over a Pentagon report, then clashed publicly with his colleague over the demand New York PostThe Wrap

• Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s office, via Sean Parnell, criticized the Post’s disclosure as criminal.

Raw Story

• Dan Lamothe, a military-affairs reporter for the Washington Post, emphasized that independent journalism is not a crime and highlighted the importance of reporting when officials withhold key details about the war.

New York Post

• Four senior military commanders formally objected to extending the Iran operation.

Raw Story

• The “non-concurs” originated from leaders of U.S. European Command, U.S. Pacific Command, U.S. Southern Command, and the Navy’s top admiral.

Raw Story

• “This is unusual: a Washington Post columnist is calling for the prosecution of the newspaper’s sources,” — Benjamin Mullin, times media reporter

New York Post

• “You must have missed my columns in the Post over the last 16 years on Snowden and Assange. Been pretty consistent,” — Marc Thiessen

New York Post

No additional scheduled actions were detailed in the sources beyond the ongoing debate over whether the source should face prosecution and the Pentagon’s continued objections to the Iran deployment strategy.

The Wrap