Craig Whitlock

Washington, D.C.

Investigative Reporter at The Washington Post

Investigative reporter for The Washington Post. #1 NYT Bestselling author of "FAT LEONARD" (2024) and "THE AFGHANISTAN PAPERS" (2021).

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Articles

For Trump’s national security adviser, Afghanistan still looms large

Jan 18, 2025 | stripes.com | Craig Whitlock

Michael Waltz, President-elect Donald Trump's choice for national security adviser, during a deployment as a Green Beret to Afghanistan’s Tagab Valley in 2006. He was an officer in the National Guard who served in Afghanistan with the 20th Special Forces Group. (Michael Waltz via The Washington Post) In February 2020, Rep. Michael Waltz, then a first-term GOP lawmaker, received a coveted invitation to fly to his home state of Florida aboard Air Force One.
For Trump’s national security adviser, Afghanistan still looms large

Jan 18, 2025 | msn.com | Craig Whitlock

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For Michael Waltz, Trump’s national security pick, Afghanistan remains key

Jan 18, 2025 | washingtonpost.com | Craig Whitlock

In February 2020, Rep. Michael Waltz, then a first-term GOP lawmaker, received a coveted invitation to fly to his home state of Florida aboard Air Force One. During the flight, he seized the opportunity to lobby President Donald Trump about an issue to which he had devoted most of his career: the war in Afghanistan. Trump had just approved a conditional peace agreement with the Taliban that called for the full withdrawal of U.S. troops within 14 months.
For Trump’s national security adviser, Afghanistan still looms large

Jan 18, 2025 | flipboard.com | Craig Whitlock

1 day agoFor over a decade, China's social media has been living in its own world. Without access to YouTube, Facebook, Google, or Instagram, the country instead relies on local apps such as BiliBili, Weibo, Baidu, and, more recently — Xiaohongshu. Xiaohongshu, now known in English as RedNote, transformed …
U.S. Navy con man ‘Fat Leonard’ faces sentencing in San Diego

Nov 1, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Craig Whitlock

Leonard Glenn Francis, left, with Adm. Samuel Locklear III, the commander of U.S. Pacific Command between 2012 and 2015. Francis, a Malaysian defense contractor known as “Fat Leonard,” owned a Singapore-based firm that supplied U.S. Navy vessels in Asia for a quarter-century.
‘Fat Leonard’ faces sentencing as epic Navy scandal nears end

Nov 1, 2024 | stripes.com | Craig Whitlock

This undated photo provided by the U.S. Marshals Service shows Leonard Francis. (U.S. Marshals Service/AP) SAN DIEGO — Leonard Glenn Francis, the rotund U.S. Navy contractor, con man and escape artist who repeatedly outwitted federal officials over two decades, could be freed from prison in as little as one year under a new plea agreement he has reached with the Justice Department, court records show.
Washington Post publisher William Lewis retains ties to past business ventures

Jun 22, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Craig Whitlock |Jonathan O'Connell |Jon Swaine

A small digital start-up launched by Washington Post publisher William Lewis has entered into an agreement with The Post that allows the two companies to pursue deals together, even as Lewis still holds a financial stake in the firm. The News Movement, which Lewis co-founded in 2020, recently developed pitches for two major advertisers, Rolex and Starbucks, to engage in commercial partnerships that would involve The Post, according to documents and interviews.
Fat Leonard bribery cases fall apart because of prosecution blunders

May 20, 2024 | sfgate.com | Craig Whitlock

Few Navy officers entangled themselves in the Fat Leonard corruption scandalmore than Steve Shedd. In court documents and testimony, the former warship captain confessed to leaking military secrets on 10 occasions for prostitutes, vacations, luxury watches and other bribes worth $105,000. On the witness stand in a related case in 2022, Shedd also admitted that he had lied repeatedly to federal agents and betrayed his oath to defend the Constitution.
Fat Leonard bribery cases fall apart because of prosecution blunders

May 20, 2024 | washingtonpost.com | Craig Whitlock

A paralegal dyes Leonard Francis’s hair while he prepares for a debriefing by federal agents in the U.S. attorney’s office in San Diego in 2015. In reward for his cooperation, the Malaysian defense contractor was permitted to hire staff who gave him manicures, pedicures and foot rubs. (Obtained by The Washington Post)CommentSaveFew Navy officers entangled themselves in the Fat Leonard corruption scandalmore than Steve Shedd.
Fat Leonard bribery cases fall apart because of prosecution blunders

May 19, 2024 | stripes.com | Craig Whitlock |Ann Pinson

This undated photo provided by the U.S. Marshals Service shows Leonard Francis, also known as “Fat Leonard.” (U.S. Marshals Service) Few Navy officers entangled themselves in the Fat Leonard corruption scandal more than Steve Shedd. In court documents and testimony, the former warship captain confessed to leaking military secrets on 10 occasions for prostitutes, vacations, luxury watches and other bribes worth $105,000.