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.
-
5 hilariously sparse cartoons about further DOGE cuts
Cartoons Artists take on free audits, report cards, and more
By The Week US Published
-
Following the Tea Horse Road in China
The Week Recommends This network of roads and trails served as vital trading routes
By The Week UK Published
-
Crossword: March 30, 2025
The Week's daily crossword
By The Week Staff Published
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff Published
-
Supreme Court upholds 'ghost gun' restrictions
Speed Read Ghost guns can be regulated like other firearms
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump sets 25% tariffs on auto imports
Speed Read The White House says the move will increase domestic manufacturing. But the steep import taxes could also harm the US auto industry.
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump allies urge White House to admit chat blunder
Speed Read Even pro-Trump figures are criticizing The White House's handling of the Signal scandal
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Waltz takes blame for texts amid calls for Hegseth ouster
Speed Read Democrats are calling for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and national security adviser Michael Waltz to step down
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Judge: Nazis treated better than Trump deportees
speed read U.S. District Judge James Boasberg reaffirmed his order barring President Donald Trump from deporting alleged Venezuelan gang members
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US officials share war plans with journalist in group chat
Speed Read Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg was accidentally added to a Signal conversation about striking Yemen
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Canada's Mark Carney calls snap election
speed read Voters will go to the polls on April 28 to pick a new government
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published