Why Low-Ranking Soldiers Have Access to Top Secret Documents

<p>Last week, a 21-year old airman from Massachusetts, Jack Teixeira, was arrested under the Espionage Act and charged with violating federal laws by sharing top secret military documents with an online gaming group.</p><p>Dave Philipps, a military correspondent for The Times, explains why so many low-level government workers have access to so much classified material.</p><p>Guest: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/dave-philipps">Dave Philipps</a>, a military correspondent for The New York Times.</p><p>Background reading: </p><ul><li>The arrest of Mr. Teixeira lays bare<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/13/us/politics/documents-leak-security-clearance.html"> the sheer volume of people who have clearance</a> to view a swath of national security documents that the government categorizes as top secret.</li><li>Mr. Teixeira grew up in<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/15/us/jack-teixeira-pentagon-leak.html"> a family with strong military ties</a>, was quiet and somewhat awkward in high school and seemed, to some, unnervingly obsessed with war and guns.</li><li>The<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/14/us/politics/jack-teixeira-leaked-documents-case.html?searchResultPosition=3"> Teixeira case is unusual</a> even in the small world of leak cases.</li></ul><p>For more information on today’s episode, visit <a href="http://nytimes.com/thedaily?smid=pc-thedaily">nytimes.com/thedaily</a>. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.</p>