Yesterday an arrest was made concerning the Pentagon leak. It’s an arrest that has given rise to more questions than answers.

Jack Teixeira, 21, is an enlisted airman with the Massachusetts Air National Guard at Otis Air National Guard Base, and he joined the service in September 2019. He is a cyber transport systems journeyman, while those specialists within cyber transport systems are tasked with ensuring the Air Force’s “vast, global communications network” is operating correctly.

He was arrested on Thursday afternoon in Dighton, Massachusetts, without incident by the FBI.

He’s an airman 1st class, which is the third enlisted rank an airman will make, and he has one achievement medal during his time in the service, according to an Air Force spokeswoman.

“Today, the FBI took 21-year-old Jack Douglas Teixeira into custody without incident at a residence in North Dighton, Massachusetts, for his alleged involvement in leaking classified U.S. government and military documents,” an FBI spokesperson told the Washington Examiner in a statement. “The FBI is continuing to conduct authorized law enforcement activity at the residence. Since late last week the FBI has aggressively pursued investigative leads and today’s arrest exemplifies our continued commitment to identifying, pursuing, and holding accountable those who betray our country’s trust and put our national security at risk.”

This is the guy who allegedly, who got hold of tons of military and intelligence secrets and posted them on a specific Discord gaming group he belonged to. The Washington Post laid out that entire scenario just the other day.

The man behind a massive leak of U.S. government secrets that has exposed spying on allies, revealed the grim prospects for Ukraine’s war with Russia and ignited diplomatic fires for the White House is a young, charismatic gun enthusiast who shared highly classified documents with a group of far-flung acquaintances searching for companionship amid the isolation of the pandemic.

United by their mutual love of guns, military gear and God, the group of roughly two dozen — mostly men and boys — formed an invitation-only clubhouse in 2020 on Discord, an online platform popular with gamers. But they paid little attention last year when the man some call “OG” posted a message laden with strange acronyms and jargon. The words were unfamiliar, and few people read the long note, one of the members explained. But he revered OG, the elder leader of their tiny tribe, who claimed to know secrets that the government withheld from ordinary people.

The pandemic lockdowns were an isolating event for all of us, but for members of our military who need to be able to work with and respond to issues with their fellow soldiers BY THEIR SIDE, the isolation could’ve bred disassociation with this kid. Which could’ve led him to making the VERY BAD decision to start gathering up critical intelligence information and posting it within his group of internet “friends” to gain attention. 

Except, as I noted here, this leak was bad on multiple fronts. Including the detriment to our already deteriorating foreign policy, and the cratering morale within our military. Which leads me to another question. Where was command in all of this and why didn’t the officers in charge have eyes on him??

Given the scope of the leaks, it’s evident this kid waltzed out with hundreds of documents not over a period of a day or two, but weeks if not months. Why did no one have eyes on this guy?? The command staff needs to be hauled in and questioned BIGLY on this. 

Of course, many are also asking how an 18-21 year old can get a security clearance. I’ll let my friend Laughing Wolf provide some answers to that. 

The factor is not the age. It is the maturity, it is the integrity, and it is the honor. @pnjaban FYI. @amuse if you can't tell me about SIPR, Intelligence Watch, and Intelligence Officer, might I suggest silence until you do understand them? Check the thread.

— LaughingWolfOne (@LaughingWolfOne) April 13, 2023

Not only that, but there’s this regarding his MOS (military occupational specialty).

Though officials have not said whether Teixeira had a security clearance, his job as a cyber transport systems journeymen (CTSJ) may have required him to work with and protect sensitive communication channels.

Oh, but his family is a family of patriots who have served and have worked on behalf of our soldiers. That’s wonderful for them. That doesn’t mean that other family members, such as this kid, aren’t prone to making stupid decisions…and he made a REALLY stupid one. Which gives rise to another question. How is it that the media broke this story, knew about all the leaks, and it is the DoD (who had no clue evidently) along with military investigators and the FBI that are now playing catch up?

The crisis has blindsided the Pentagon, which did not become aware until last week that secrets had for weeks been spreading online, and forced the Biden administration to have awkward conversations with allies and partners about explosive issues. The FBI did not descend on the Teixeira home until after The Post revealed numerous details about the still-anonymous leaker on Wednesday night, and after the New York Times followed up on Thursday by identifying Teixeira by name.

Who was responsible for monitoring this kid’s activities? Who dropped the ball? They need to be identified, held accountable, and fired. 

NBC claims Biden plans to further engage in social media control and conversation monitoring in response to embarrassing classified doc leak. https://t.co/FMr1rM2FOU

— Mollie (@MZHemingway) April 14, 2023

UNLESS the command staff is held to account, monitoring social media won’t cut it. 

It isn’t just Biden that Blewitt, it is this entire damned administration that is blowing it, and this massive leak is one of the consequences.

Feature Photo Credit: classified top secret by Mokee81 via iStock, cropped and modified