Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Al Mayadeen: Israeli warplanes raid the outskirts of Al-Aishiya and Al-Mahmoudiya, Southern Lebanon.
Israeli media: Direct damage from Iranian bombing of "Israel" in one week is estimated at approximately 5 billion shekels (about $1.35 billion)
Unprovoked aggression against Iran has no basis or justification: Putin
Shahid Beheshti University Public Relations: The Israeli aggression targeted a building belonging to Shahid Beheshti University with the aim of sabotaging Iran's cultural and scientific infrastructure
Al Mayadeen correspondent: The Fordow nuclear facility was bombed once again, 24 hours after the US aggression.
Fars News Agency, citing informed sources: The Iranian Armed Forces used the Kheibar-Shekan, Emad, Ghadr, and Fattah missiles in their attacks on the Israeli entity today
Sirens sound from the occupied Golan Heights to Akka and Nahariya
Sirens sound again in the occupied Golan Heights and al-Jalil
Israeli media: Power outages reported in several settlements following a missile attack targeting an infrastructure facility
Israeli media: Strategic location in the south likely hit

Pentagon scrubs policy board site over alleged hostility to Trump

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: The Intercept
  • 25 Apr 2025 22:07
3 Min Read

After former Pentagon aide Dan Caldwell accused the Defense Policy Board of harboring anti-Trump members responsible for leaks, the Pentagon quietly removed the board’s website and member list.

Listen
  • x
  •  Pentagon scrubs policy board site after Trump aide's allegations
    Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth listens as President Donald Trump meets with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store during a bilateral meeting in the Oval Office of the White House on April 24, 2025. (AP)

The Pentagon discreetly removed the Defense Policy Board’s website after a former aide to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who had been dismissed, alleged that it was filled with members hostile to President Donald Trump and potentially responsible for harmful leaks.

The board’s online member list was taken down following Dan Caldwell’s appearance on Tucker Carlson’s show, where he claimed the board was made up of individuals "incredibly hostile" to Trump.

Caldwell was let go on Friday as part of a leak investigation within the Defense Department that has also resulted in the removal of several close associates of Hegseth.

During his interview with Carlson, Caldwell portrayed himself as a casualty of an internal struggle between pro-war advocates pushing for war with Iran and non-interventionists like himself.

Despite the Defense Policy Board is merely an advisory body without any direct authority, Caldwell pointed fingers at members such as Susan Rice, a former aide to Joe Biden, suggesting they could be behind the leaks he was accused of.

“She and a bunch of other people who are incredibly hostile to the president and his worldview remain on the Defense Policy Board,” the fired aide said, adding, “I would just say, if you want to look where leaks are maybe coming from, that would be a place to start.”

His accusations quickly gained traction online, boosted by former Trump National Security Advisor Michael Flynn.

Related News

'Israel' may stage false flag to force US into Iran war, experts warn

Pentagon removes joint staff officer over anti-'Israel' posts

By Thursday, the names of Susan Rice and other members of the policy board had disappeared from the Pentagon’s website. According to Internet Archive records, the removal occurred after Caldwell’s interview was shared on X on Monday.

Earlier in the week, a Pentagon spokesperson told Responsible Statecraft that the roster was “up to date.”

It remains uncertain whether the board members have actually been dismissed, as the Defense Department has yet to respond to a request for comment.

If Hegseth has indeed removed them, it would mark the latest in a string of significant shake-ups to the board’s composition over the last five years.

While the board stayed mostly unchanged during the early years of Trump’s presidency, many of its members were removed by the administration in November 2020.

Trump replaced longtime policy board members like Henry Kissinger and Madeleine Albright with loyalists such as Newt Gingrich and Scott O’Grady. After taking office, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin removed all members from the board and others, later filling the roles with establishment figures from both Democratic and Republican administrations, including individuals like Susan Rice and Eric Edelman.

According to board minutes available online, it has not convened since June of last year.

It's unclear why Hegseth, who has quickly removed Biden-affiliated people from Defense Department leadership, would have enabled Rice to access classified material.

Caldwell contended that board participation would have provided a path for members like Rice by providing her with a "credential and affiliation" with the Pentagon.

  • Pentagon
  • Pentagon leaks
  • Donald Trump
  • Trump administration
  • Pete Hegseth
  • US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth

Most Read

Iran launches 9th wave of Op. True Promise 3, destroys IOF air defense

Iran launches 9th wave of Op. True Promise 3, destroys IOF air defense

  • MENA
  • 17 Jun 2025
Israeli workers survey the site where a missile launched from Iran struck in Haifa on Sunday, June 22, 2025. (AP)

True Promise 3, wave 20: 40 missiles launched, Kheibar-Shekan in first

  • Politics
  • 22 Jun 2025
Rescue team work at the site where a missile launched from Iran struck Tel Aviv, Israel, Monday, June 16, 2025 (AP)

Wave 12 of Operation True Promise 3 launched, Sejjil deployed: IRGC

  • Politics
  • 18 Jun 2025
Iran launches missile barrage to Tel Aviv, casualties reported

True Promise 3, wave 14: Tel Aviv targeted, casualties reported

  • Politics
  • 19 Jun 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
Spain's Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares Bueno speaks with the media as he arrives for a meeting of EU foreign ministers at the European Council building in Brussels, Monday, June 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)
Politics

Spain seeks immediate suspension of EU association pact with 'Israel'

Israeli settlers evacuate a building damaged in an Iranian missile strike in Tel Aviv, Sunday, June 22, 2025. (AP)
Politics

Tel Aviv streets ghostly; settlers flee under Iranian missile fire

Trump’s secret Iran strike uncovered in explosive CNN report
Politics

Behind the scenes: Trump's decision to strike Iran mapped - CNN

The oil tanker Palanca Rio arrives in Portland, Maine, the United States, Wednesday, April 2, 2025 (AP)
Economy

Oil prices spike as US-Israeli aggression on Iran sparks concerns

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS