Tulsi Gabbard’s efforts to plug media leaks across U.S. intelligence agencies have backfired dramatically after two sources leaked details of those efforts to the media.
The Director of National Intelligence reportedly sent out a memo last month demanding to know whether those agencies believe it would be feasible to carry out polygraph tests on both employees and contractors at random, CBS News reports.
The two sources, at least one of whom reportedly works under Gabbard at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), spoke with CBS on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals, given that they are not permitted to speak publicly.
According to the outlet, Gabbard’s order apparently emphasizes the tests would need to feature, as standard, questions as to whether subjects have fed information to the press to determine whether it’d be appropriate to grant or preserve their security clearance.
It adds that agencies can expect polygraphs of employees and contractors to become a more regular feature of intelligence work in the United States, even as the directive only asks for a review of feasibility, rather than ordering agencies to begin testing imminently.
They said that while they understand the government’s duty to safeguard sensitive intel, that duty nevertheless has the potential to stymie the disclosure of information otherwise in the public interest.
It comes amid a broader campaign by the Trump administration to stamp down on leaks across government departments and federal agencies. At the FBI, Bureau Director Kash Patel has already made extensive use of polygraph tests under the guise of protecting national security, even as reports indicate some of the questions have, in fact, been more about how he is perceived among his staff.
Last week, The Washington Post published an article claiming that the Department of Defense is moving ahead with plans to implement random polygraphing of staff, while also demanding that employees, both civilian and active service, and contractors sign non-disclosure agreements as a condition of their work.
“Our nation’s Intelligence Community must be focused on our national security mission. Politically motivated leaks undermine our national security and the trust of the American people, and will not be tolerated,” Gabbard posted on X earlier in March.
“Unfortunately, such leaks have become commonplace with no investigation or accountability,” she went on. “That ends now. We know of and are aggressively pursuing recent leakers from within the Intelligence Community and will hold them accountable.”
Meanwhile, Bradley Moss, an attorney specializing in national security whose firm was stripped of its clearance around the time of Gabbard’s post, characterizes the anti-disclosure drive as more to do with the Trump administration’s efforts to cow federal workers out of causing the White House any embarrassment.
“This is an obnoxious flexing of bureaucratic muscle by yet another Trump agency head seeking to intimidate and abuse their workforce,” Moss told CBS, calling Gabbard’s memo “a serious waste of finite resources that will do little but force out a few officials and disrupt agency operations in the interim.”
“Everyone should keep an eye on those officials who are exempt from this requirement and how closely politically aligned they are with Gabbard,” he added.
The Daily Beast has reached out to the ODNI for comment on this story. “Since the start of President Trump’s second term, we have seen numerous unauthorized disclosures of classified information, which have the potential to damage U.S. strategic alliances and credibility and endanger sources and methods vital to intelligence gathering,” a spokesperson told CBS News.
“The fact that deep state actors leaked information about DNI Gabbard’s directive, aimed at preventing leaks and protecting classified information, to the media is both deeply ironic and a powerful reminder of why her efforts to identify and deter leakers is urgently necessary,” they added.
