Pentagon Places Conservative Military Influencers in Government Roles, Report Says
The Pentagon has quietly placed several conservative military veterans with large online followings into government positions, according to a report from The Washington Post that was cited by The Philadelphia Inquirer and the Jerusalem Post. The report, based on anonymous sources familiar with the matter and corroborating material, said the influencers have worked to amplify Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s viewpoints and push against criticism of the Trump administration.
Those involved include Rob Maness, a retired Air Force colonel; Kurt Schlichter, a retired Army colonel; and Thomas Anderson, another retired Army colonel, according to the report. Pentagon records reviewed by The Washington Post show that Maness and Schlichter have active official government email addresses as of this past week and are assigned to the office of Anthony Tata, the undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness. Anderson was listed in Pentagon records earlier this year with a similar email address, though he was no longer listed late this past week, the reports said. The email addresses include a civ” suffix, indicating the holders are classified as civilian employees rather than military personnel or contractors.
The retired officers have continued to maintain sizable online presences. Maness has more than 135,000 followers on X, Schlichter has nearly 620,000, and Anderson, who writes under the pen name Cynical Publius, has more than 323,000, according to the reports.
The assignments fall under the office of Defense Under Secretary Anthony Tata, which has been tasked with addressing issues including what has been termed “woke” college ideology and COVID vaccine policies for American soldiers, the Jerusalem Post reported. Hegseth said in March that a task force, the Senior Service College Task Force, was organized with the goal of rooting out ideology deemed “toxic” or “woke,” according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
The report detailed that the influencers have appeared on behalf of the Pentagon’s task force at the Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, in May, where they met with students and professors and asked questions about the performance of leaders like Hegseth and Gen. Dan Caine, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. Some students were uncertain how candid they should be and whether there would be negative consequences, and the task force members had concerns about the syllabus for a class focused on how military officers communicate with Congress, the report said, citing people familiar with the visit.
The task force has completed its research and prepared a report that has not yet been released, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. Anderson said on social media on Sunday night that he was asked to join the task force after he published an article in February recommending changes to the war colleges, the report said. He also said he was a special government employee through July 26 with work “exclusively limited” to the task force.
The placements have drawn scrutiny amid broader questions about the Pentagon’s use of influencers. The increased attention comes after another conservative influencer, Jennica Pounds, accused a State Department official this month on social media of attempting to entrap her into publishing government secrets, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. Sarah Rogers, the undersecretary of state for public diplomacy, later disclosed on social media that she was the official who had reached out to Pounds, the report said. The dustup was followed by the Pentagon and Pounds disclosing that she works as a special government employee for the Defense Department, andhat she applied for a Pentagon press pass and received it in April.
Adam Kinzinger, a former Republican congressman and Air Force veteran, posted that it appears the Pentagon “is using your tax dollars tot hire influencers on X to put out partisan talking points,” according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Among those named, Maness retired from the Air Force in 2011 and has run unsuccessfully for a S. Senate seat in Louisiana, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. He is listed as the chairperson of GatorPAC, a political action committee, and has published articles criticizing what he calls “disloyal” career employees and defending Hegseth’s efforts to reduce the number of military officers who attend elite universities for fellowships. A Post spokesperson said that Maness did not disclose any connection to the Pentagon before publication, the report said.
Schlichter is a columnist with the conservative site Townhall, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. He has published columns supportive of Trump, including one calling him a “hero for finally fighting back against Iran,” and participated in videos praising Hegseth, the report said. He describes himself on X as a retired Army colonel, lawyer, and columnist, but does not disclose current Pentagon employment.
Anderson has been a frequent critic of journalists, fellow veterans, and others opposing the Trump administration, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. Writing for the Federalist in April, he assessed that there is “a cancer in America’s military ranks,and it must be expunged before it’s too late,” the report said.
The Pentagon also brought on Jerry Dunleavy, a journalist with the conservative Just the News, to assist Hegseth’s team with an ongoing review of the fall of Afghanistan, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer. The Pentagon disclosed Dunleavy’s involvement in May, and he previously worked as an investigator for the GOP-led House Foreign Affairs Committee during an earlier investigation of the collapse in Kabul and quit in protest, the report said.
When contacted, Anderson and Pentagon spokesperson Joel Valdez declined to comment, while Maness and Schlichter did not respond to requests for comment, according to the reports. Pounds also did not respond to a request for comment, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.