Trump claims he knows anonymous administration official's identity, but 'I can't tell you'


President Trump's search for that anonymous senior administration official has come to an end, or so he claims.
Trump on Tuesday told reporters he now knows the identity of the administration official who in 2018 authored a New York Times op-ed describing a "resistance" inside the administration and later wrote the book A Warning.
"I know who it is," Trump said.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Asked who it is, Trump responded, "I can't tell you that, but I know who it is. But we won't get into it."
This comes after Axios reported that administration officials are discussing reassigning Victoria Coates, deputy national security adviser, amid a whisper campaign that she is the anonymous official, an accusation both she and a literary agent behind A Warning have denied. The Daily Beast also recently reported that Trump's trade adviser, Peter Navarro, has been "conducting his own private investigation into the identity of Anonymous" and has "zeroed in on at least one likely suspect."
Trump on Tuesday also claimed he knows "who some of the leakers are" because "when I want to get something out to the press, I tell certain people, and it's amazing, it gets out there."
Whether Trump ends up outing the anonymous official, we'll know their identity sooner or later, as the person during a Reddit Ask Me Anything last year vowed to come forward before November. "Trump will hear from me, in my own name, before the 2020 election," they wrote. Brendan Morrow
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
Why are white South Africans emigrating?
The Explainer As the US welcomes Afrikaner refugees, the general exodus of South Africa's white population continues to grow
-
Why the weather keeps getting 'stuck'
In the Spotlight Record hot and dry spring caused by 'blocked' area of high pressure above the UK
-
Can Starmer sell himself as the 'tough on immigration' PM?
Today's Big Question Former human rights lawyer 'now needs to own the change – not just mouth the slogans' to win over a sceptical public
-
Qatar luxury jet gift clouds Trump trip to Mideast
speed read Qatar is said to be presenting Trump with a $400 million plane, which would be among the biggest foreign gifts ever received by the US government
-
Trump taps Fox News' Pirro for DC attorney post
speed read The president has named Fox News host Jeanine Pirro to be the top federal prosecutor for Washington, replacing acting US Attorney Ed Martin
-
Trump, UK's Starmer outline first post-tariff deal
speed read President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Kier Starmer struck a 'historic' agreement to eliminate some of the former's imposed tariffs
-
Fed leaves rates unchanged as Powell warns on tariffs
speed read The Federal Reserve says the risks of higher inflation and unemployment are increasing under Trump's tariffs
-
Denmark to grill US envoy on Greenland spying report
speed read The Trump administration ramped up spying on Greenland, says reporting by The Wall Street Journal
-
Supreme Court allows transgender troop ban
speed read The US Supreme Court will let the Trump administration begin executing its ban on transgender military service members
-
Hollywood confounded by Trump's film tariff idea
speed read President Trump proposed a '100% tariff' on movies 'produced in foreign lands'
-
Trump offers migrants $1,000 to 'self-deport'
speed read The Department of Homeland Security says undocumented immigrants can leave the US in a more 'dignified way'