White House orders end to Hegseth’s polygraph hunt for 'leakers'
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A secretive Pentagon leak probe under Pete Hegseth unraveled after White House pushback, staff firings, and a scandal over unclassified intel on Yemen.
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US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth departs an event to promote President Donald Trump's domestic policy and budget agenda in the East Room of the White House, Thursday, June 26, 2025, in Washington. (AP)
A controversial effort by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to root out internal leaks through polygraph testing was quietly halted after a senior advisor raised objections to the White House, The Washington Post reported, citing US officials and individuals familiar with the matter.
Patrick Weaver, a senior aide to Hegseth, contacted White House officials earlier this year, expressing concern that he could soon be ordered to undergo a polygraph test himself. Weaver, known for his hardline stance on immigration and his ties to White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, reportedly feared he was being targeted by the leak investigation. Several sources familiar with the events spoke on condition of anonymity due to potential retaliation from the Trump administration, as per the report.
Sources told The Washington Post that after polygraph tests had already begun within Hegseth’s office in April, a person close to the administration made a call instructing Hegseth’s team to stop the practice. The identity of the caller has not been disclosed. The order marked a rare intervention by the White House into an internal Pentagon probe.
Prior to the White House’s intervention, Hegseth authorized multiple polygraph examinations over a span of several weeks. He was advised by Tim Parlatore, who served both as his private attorney and as a part-time military aide.
Targeting the Joint Service Group
According to sources, members of the Joint Service Interagency Advisory Group, created to bolster counter-narcotics efforts and border security, were among those subjected to polygraph tests. The team includes Special Operations personnel and representatives from federal agencies such as the FBI.
Col. Ricky Buria, a military aide who was later promoted to senior advisor, also underwent a polygraph exam. Officials say the results were inconclusive, a detail first reported by The Guardian. Buria filed retirement papers from the Marine Corps in April and transitioned into a political role.
Hegseth also allegedly threatened to administer polygraph tests to top Pentagon leaders, including Navy Adm. Christopher Grady, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Army Lt. Gen. Douglas A. Sims, director of the Joint Staff. These threats were first revealed by The Wall Street Journal.
Despite an initial plan to elevate Sims to four-star general, Hegseth reversed course following the polygraph controversy. This decision reportedly came despite objections from Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and other senior military officials. The move, first reported by The New York Times, angered military leaders who viewed Sims as a nonpartisan professional deserving of the promotion.
Asked about the polygraph tests, the Pentagon did not provide a direct response. “The Department will not comment on an ongoing investigation,” said spokesperson Sean Parnell in a written statement. “The Fake News Media’s obsession with months-old workplace gossip is a reflection of the sad and pathetic state of ‘journalism’ in Washington.”
Parnell added that Hegseth appreciates Sims’s service, “We wish him well in his future endeavors.”
Others decline to speak
The White House referred inquiries to the Pentagon. Weaver and Buria did not respond to requests for comment. Parlatore also declined to comment, as per the report.
The polygraph initiative unfolded amid turmoil within Hegseth’s senior staff. In April, he fired three high-level appointees, Dan Caldwell, Colin Carroll, and Darin Selnick, accusing them of leaking to the media. The dismissed officials denied the allegations and accused Hegseth’s office of defamation. No evidence has been presented to support Hegseth’s claims.
Origin of leak probe
The leak investigation formally began in March with a memo from Joe Kasper, then serving as Hegseth’s chief of staff. The memo cited “unauthorized disclosures of national security information” and called for a “thorough investigation.”
“The use of polygraphs in the execution of this investigation will be in accordance with applicable law and policy,” Kasper wrote on March 21. He stated the probe would produce a final report to the defense secretary, detailing unauthorized disclosures and offering policy recommendations.
Just days later, another controversy, dubbed “Signalgate", further rattled the Pentagon. In an unclassified group chat, Hegseth and other senior officials discussed a pending airstrike against Yemen. An editor from The Atlantic had inadvertently been added to the chat.
Hegseth’s post on the unclassified messaging platform included operational details about the strike before it took place, raising alarms.
Though the administration insisted that no classified material was disclosed, sources told the Defense Department’s inspector general that the details mirrored content from a classified email marked “SECRET/NOFORN,” meaning that its release could harm national security and was not meant for foreign dissemination.
Kasper steps down, new advisors named
Amid growing tensions, Kasper stepped down in April, moving into a private sector job and part-time government role. Hegseth then reshuffled his advisory team, naming Buria, Parnell, Weaver, and Justin Fulcher as senior advisers. Fulcher had recently left his role at the Department of Government Oversight and Enforcement (DOGE) after a dispute.
Fulcher left the Pentagon days after The Washington Post reported that he joined Hegseth’s team following a heated exchange with a DOGE supervisor. After storming out of a meeting, Fulcher claimed law enforcement had been called to locate him. Hegseth reportedly confronted DOGE official Yinon Weiss, who said he had notified another government employee, not the police.
Fulcher also attracted White House attention after claiming he knew of surveillance methods that could expose leakers. He was assigned to assist Parlatore, but officials later concluded that Fulcher had overstated his knowledge and that the evidence he referenced did not exist. This was first reported by The Guardian.
While Hegseth’s team insisted Fulcher’s departure was mutual, other officials said he was likely pushed out after losing the confidence of senior administration figures.
