Pentagon Reportedly Hires Conservative Military Influencers for Civilian Roles

The Pentagon has discreetly appointed several conservative military veterans with large social media followings to civilian government positions, according to a report by The Washington Post. These individuals have been assigned to the office of Anthony Tata, the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness, and have used their platforms to promote the views of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth while criticizing opponents of the Trump administration. Pentagon records show that Rob Maness, a retired Air Force colonel with over 135,000 followers on X, and Kurt Schlichter, a retired Army colonel with nearly 620,000 followers, held active government email addresses with a.civ suffix. Thomas Anderson, a retired Army colonel and attorney who writes as Cynical Publius with over 323,000 followers, was also listed in records earlier this year. Sources indicate these individuals were designated as special government employees (SGE) or highly qualified experts (HQE), roles that allow for varying levels of work and compensation. The office of Anthony Tata has focused on issues such as ideology in military academies and COVID vaccine policies. While center right sources describe the operation as a covert effort to amplify Hegseth's ideas, a left leaning source frames these appointments as part of a broader pattern of personnel scandals and policy failures under Secretary Hegseth's leadership.