The White House has reportedly ordered Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to stop using polygraph tests on Pentagon officials suspected of leaking sensitive information, following concerns raised by a senior aide.
According to a Washington Post report, Patrick Weaver, an adviser to Hegseth and former National Security Council official, raised alarms after being told he might soon be subjected to a lie detector test. That triggered internal discussions and ultimately led to a directive from the White House to discontinue the polygraph screenings.
Leak Hunt Triggered by March Memo
The leak investigation began in late March, when Hegseth’s then–chief of staff Joe Kasper issued a memo calling for a thorough probe into “unauthorized disclosures of national security information” involving internal Pentagon communications.
“The use of polygraphs in the execution of this investigation will be in accordance with applicable law and policy,” Kasper wrote in the March 21 memo, which officially launched the leak probe.
Signal Chat Leak Sparked Internal Fallout
The controversy follows the high-profile “Signalgate” incident earlier this year, when private Signal app conversations between top Trump administration officials were leaked to the press. The chat reportedly included discussions of pending military operations, including strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen.
Despite being hosted on an encrypted platform, the conversation was inadvertently compromised when then–National Security Advisor Mike Waltz included The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg in the chat. Among those on the thread were Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, and Secretary Hegseth.
Waltz later took “full responsibility” for the breach, calling it an “embarrassing mistake.”
Hegseth Retains Trump’s Backing
While the White House stepped in to stop the use of polygraphs, President Donald Trump has continued to stand by Hegseth, voicing confidence in his leadership at the Pentagon. Trump has not publicly commented on the polygraph directive, but sources indicate the president supports a full investigation into the leaks — just not through polygraph testing.
Neither the White House nor the Pentagon responded to Fox News’ requests for comment.
The halted polygraph plan is just the latest chapter in ongoing turmoil within the Defense Department, as it navigates leaks, internal power struggles, and efforts by Hegseth to overhaul what he has described as a “DC-centric, America Last” military bureaucracy.
