WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥� The Pentagon鈥檚 intelligence and law enforcement arms are investigating what it says are leaks of national security information. Defense Department personnel could face polygraphs in the latest such inquiry by the Trump administration.
A memo late Friday from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth鈥檚 chief of staff referred to 鈥渞ecent unauthorized disclosures鈥� of such information, but provided no details about alleged leaks. Earlier in the day, President Donald Trump rejected reports that adviser Elon Musk would be briefed on how the United States would fight a hypothetical war with China.
鈥淚f this effort results in information identifying a party responsible for an unauthorized disclosure," then such information 鈥渨ill be referred to the appropriate criminal entity for criminal prosecution,鈥� according to the memo.
At the Homeland Security Department, pledged this month to step up lie detector tests on employees in an effort to identify those who may be leaking information about operations to the media.
The on Friday announced an investigation into 鈥渢he selective leak of inaccurate, but nevertheless classified, information" from intelligence agencies about Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan gang whose members in the United States are being targeted for .
Leaks occur in every administration 鈥� and government officials can be the source 鈥� as a trial balloon to test how a potential policy decision will be received.
While polygraph exams are typically not admissible in court proceedings, they are frequently used by federal law enforcement agencies and for national security clearances. In 1998, the ruled they were also inadmissible in military justice proceedings.
They are inadmissible because they are unreliable and often result in false positives, said , a former Army interrogator and reserve intelligence officer who went on to found . Mashke failed a polygraph himself when applying to the FBI.
But they have been intermittently used since the 1990s to intimidate and scare sources from talking to reporters, Maschke said. A 1999 Pentagon report said it was expanding the program to use polygraphs on defense personnel 鈥渋f classified information they had access to has been leaked."