MAGA Loves Leaks: Trump Loyalists Hail U.S. Intel Breach

By Kevin Howley, April 23, 2023

There was a time – not that long ago really, well within living memory in fact – when Republicans routinely played up their national security bona fides.

Not anymore.

The Party of Trump routinely distances itself from anything remotely resembling the GOP of yesteryear. From the J6 insurrection to Trump’s gross mishandling of classified records the MAGA crowd embraces lawbreaking and promotes disorder to score political points for the criminally-indicted, twice-impeached former president – regardless of the lousy optics, let alone the consequences.

Case in point: the April 13  arrest of Jack Teixeira, the 21-year-old Air National Guardsman at the center of the largest US intelligence breach in a decade. Most observers were quick to condemn Teixeira for reckless disregard of classified information. But for the MAGA faithful, who routinely dismiss Trump World’s high crimes and misdemeanors, Teixeira is nothing short of a national hero.

It’s the sort of political grandstanding befitting a self-serving cohort of disingenuous talking heads – looking at you Tucker – and empty-headed trolls like MTG and Don Jr.

 Marjorie’s Martyr

Not one to miss any opportunity to claim the media spotlight, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene rushed to Teixeira’s defense, posting to Twitter: “Jake Teixeira is white, male, Christian, and antiwar. That makes him an enemy to the Biden regime.” All too predictably, news outlets echoed and amplified Greene’s talking points, adding plenty of heat but precious little light to the larger issue: the US government’s over-classification problem.

Instead, Greene got what she wanted: headlines. Newsweek’s coverage was typical, “Marjorie Taylor Greene Defends Leaks Suspect Jack Teixeira.” Over at Vanity Fair, the headline read: “Marjorie Taylor Greene Is Trying to Make the Alleged Pentagon Leaker into a Martyr.” Right wing media were quick to uncritically repeatthe martyrdom trope and proceed to take shots at Congressional Democrats who slammed their Republican colleague.

For instance, American Wire claimed that Representative Eric Swalwell (D-CA) was “triggered” by Greene’s remarks, adding smarmily that the “volatile” Democrat “probably wishes that he would have kept his itchy Twitter finger in its holster.” Fill in your own assault gun metaphor to describe MTG’s Twitter habit.

Meanwhile, the New York Post editorial board (who knew?), hedged its bets by calling out Teixeira’s defenders from either side of the aisle: “Alleged Leaker Jack Teixeira’s Defenders – Left and Right – Should Be Ashamed.”

Operating under the “there’s no such thing as bad press” principle, Greene was unbowed by Senator Lindsay’s Graham’s (R-SC) dressing down on ABC’s This Week, when the fellow Trump toady described the Georgia extremist’s comments as, “one of the most irresponsible statements you could make” about leaking classified documents.”

Not to be left out of the media firestorm, and score a few points with MAGA misogynists in the bargain, Don Jr., took to Twitter and praised Teixeira as a hero, adding “He’d Make Superman Look Like a B*tch!”

Biden Bashing 101

The Washington Post observed that Fox New host Tucker Carlson was taking a page from a well-worn playbook when he came to Teixeira’s defense. “Carlson took advantage of a novel opportunity to press his case that the government was overstepping in Ukraine and targeting conservative opponents.”

The Post’s Philip Bump adds that Carlson has a point that whatever we make of Teixeira, he’s no whistleblower. “But since Carlson’s target is the administration and the administration had arrested Teixeira, Teixeira was a noble warrior in Carlson’s crusade.” Right wing media seized the opportunity to play the blame game while sidestepping glaring questions over Teixeira’s possible motives.

Earlier this month, Fox News host and nobody, but nobody’s fool, Sean Hannity, made the following pronouncement: “Let me be very clear here tonight. This is a big deal. Number one, all of us, all of you have been lied to by Joe Biden and the Biden administration and their inability to safeguard this country’s most sensitive secrets.” For good measure, the man who clearly wasn’t looking into a mirror at the time, added, “This is clear and present danger, a major threat to national security.”

Fox rival Newsmax offered a similar take in a story headlined “Biden’s Blindness to National Security Threats Beyond Outrageous.” Likewise, Townhall claims “Biden Admin Was Caught Off Guard Again by Classified Intel Leak.” Then there’s this twisted bit of Biden bashing with a helping of Christian victimhood and a dash of antivax payback from PJMedia: “The Feds Missed the Docs Leak Online But Targeted Anti-Vaxxers and Catholics?”

The Praying Gamer

With no clear insight into Teixeira’s motives at this juncture, it is important to note how news outlets describe the young man. Even this semi-coherent take from Conservative HQ is quick to highlight his computer skills, his taste for firearms, and his religious conviction: “Teixeira liked to chat about guns, was an observant Christian and would often pray with group members.”

Small wonder that right wing media are playing up Teixeira’s spirituality, with headlines like this from American Wire, “Only God Can Decide What Happens From Now On’: Arrest of Leaker, 22 After He Made Final Call to Gamers.”

Agnostic that I am, prayerful gamers and gun enthusiasts’ religious fervor is cold comfort when leaked documents reveal what perilous times we live in.

Kevin Howley is a writer and educator whose work has appeared in Journalism: Theory, Practice and Criticism, Social Movement Studies, and Interactions: Studies in Communication and Culture. His most recent book is Drones: Media Discourse and the Public Imagination.

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