Pentagon Papers Leaker Says He Has Months to Live After Cancer Diagnosis
Daniel Ellsberg said he has elected not to undergo chemotherapy, and is not in any physical pain.
Stephen Hird/Reuters
Daniel Ellsberg, the defense contractor who leaked the secret history of the Vietnam War more than 50 years ago, said Thursday that he has been diagnosed with inoperable pancreatic cancer. The former government analyst said that, after his Feb. 17 diagnosis, he’d been given a prognosis of three to six months. In a lengthy letter to friends he shared on Twitter, the 91-year-old Ellsberg wrote, “I have chosen not to do chemotherapy (which offers no promise) and I have assurance of great hospice care when needed.” He said he was not in any physical pain, and that his energy levels were high. Ellsberg then turned to reflect on the act of whistleblowing that came to define his legacy. “When I copied the Pentagon Papers in 1969, I had every reason to think I would be spending the rest of my life behind bars,” he wrote. “... Yet in the end, that action—in ways I could not have foreseen, due to Nixon’s illegal responses—did have an impact on shortening the war. In addition, thanks to Nixon’s crimes, I was spared the imprisonment I expected, and I was able to spend the last fifty years with Patricia [Marx, wife] and my family, and with you, my friends.”
I wrote this letter recently to my friends in the antiwar and anti-nuclear movements. I see it’s being circulated, so I’ve decided to share it here. For all of you working on these issues, thank you, and please keep going! pic.twitter.com/8BIerLHD2U
— Daniel Ellsberg (@DanielEllsberg) March 2, 2023
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