The House Oversight Committee decided to subpoena Seth Harp, a contributing editor at Rolling Stone, following his sharing of a photo and biography of a Delta Force commander linked to recent military actions in Venezuela.
Harp posted the commander’s biography on X, which included details about his family. Afterward, he claimed that his account was locked until he removed the post. He later expressed this on social media.
The Daily Caller News Foundation has opted not to publish the commander’s name or personal details released by Harp.
Florida Representative Anna Paulina Luna, a Republican on the oversight committee, initiated the subpoena motion, labeling Harp’s actions as a breach of private information and a leak of classified data.
“I filed a motion to subpoena Seth Harp, which the committee approved unanimously with bipartisan support, to hold him accountable for leaking classified information about Operation Absolute Resolve, including personal details of the U.S. Delta Command commander,” Luna stated. “Such conduct is not protected journalism. It’s reckless and puts American lives in danger. The First Amendment does not authorize the exposure of elite military personnel or compromise operations under the guise of reporting. Congress has a constitutional obligation to step in when national security is threatened, and no one is above oversight.”
Luna added that Harp has also been referred to the Department of Justice for his actions, and the committee is looking forward to the investigation’s outcome.
“It’s disgraceful and reckless to put our service members and their families at risk,” she remarked after the vote. There was considerable bipartisan backing for the motion, including support from California Representative Robert Garcia, the committee’s leading Democrat.
In his post, Harp labeled Nicolas Maduro, the ousted leader of Venezuela, as the country’s “legitimate president,” accusing former President Donald Trump of “kidnapping” him. Most of the U.S. and its allies had regarded Maduro as an illegitimate leader prior to his ousting.
The Washington Post noted that the identities of special operations forces, like Delta Force, are usually kept highly classified by the military.
Harp pushed back against the notion that he had leaked sensitive information, asserting that he hadn’t shared any highly personal identifiers. Still, the biography he posted included the commander’s wife’s first name.
“This should not distract from the major issue: Delta Force, following Trump’s unlawful orders, invaded Venezuela and kidnapped Maduro, causing unnecessary deaths among innocent Venezuelans,” Harp asserted.
He argued that the concept of a journalist “leaking classified information” is contradictory. “The First Amendment empowers journalists to disclose classified documents. Our responsibility is to unveil truths, not shield them for officials,” he said.
He further noted that disclosing which senior military officials are involved in breaking news is not “revealing” but something the public deserves to know.
Harp, who previously served in the Iraq War and worked as Texas’s assistant attorney general, criticized Delta Force, describing it as a “drug-trafficking organization.” The Oversight Committee Chairman, Representative James Comer from Kentucky, has not yet responded to requests for comments regarding this matter.
