The Defense Department has ’secretly’ hired several conservative military veterans with large online followings to amplify Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s views and attack people who scrutinize the Trump administration, The Washington Post reports.
At the same time, it’s hard to know if influencers who endorse political candidates on both sides of the aisle actually support the candidate, or whether they’re being paid for the post, says The New York Times.
The Post says Pentagon records it reviewed show that Rob Maness, a retired Air Force colonel, and Kurt Schlichter, a retired Army colonel, both have active official government email addresses. Maness has more than 135,000 followers on X, and Schlichter has nearly 620,000.
Neither the Pentagon nor those involved have disclosed the government roles despite the Trump administration’s claims that they’re running the most transparent Defense Department in history.
The Times says there aren’t any federal regulations requiring disclosure of payments for political support on social media. Just four states have such laws and regulations, and they apply only to state and local races, not federal contests.
In most cases, the only way the public would know an influencer is being paid would be to search a candidate’s campaign finance reports, as the Times did. Even then, such compensation routinely is obscured by funneling the payments through middlemen.
“That allows influencers, in most instances, to endorse candidates for a fee without ever disclosing those payments in their posts. Creators say some campaigns have even asked them to actively conceal the fact that they’re being compensated, making it impossible to know what’s genuine support — and what is pay-for-play,” says the Times.
Last month, Rynn Reed, founder of Creator Congress, an organizing hub for influencers interested in politics, introduced a code of conduct for the group that would require creators to make clear when they’re paid, whether required by law or not.
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