--- title: Donald Trump Tells the New York Times to Reveal Op-Ed Writer description: President Donald Trump asked the New York Times to reveal the anonymous senior administration official who penned a critical op-ed Wednesday. canonical: https://time.com/5388118/trump-new-york-times-reveal-anonymous-op-ed-writer/ author: Jennifer Calfas article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2018-09-06T00:59:18.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T21:21:13.062Z article:section: Politics og:title: President Trump Tells the New York Times to Identify Anonymous Op-Ed Writer og:description: He claimed the author's identity must be shared for "National Security purposes" og:url: https://time.com/5388118/trump-new-york-times-reveal-anonymous-op-ed-writer/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt59c27140027af286/6989398bfb4eacd78e89792b/donald-trump-op-ed-tweet.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 6720 og:image:height: 3780 og:image:alt: President Trump Hosts The Amir Of The State of Kuwait Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah At The White House og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: President Trump Tells the New York Times to Identify Anonymous Op-Ed Writer twitter:description: He claimed the author's identity must be shared for "National Security purposes" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt59c27140027af286/6989398bfb4eacd78e89792b/donald-trump-op-ed-tweet.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # President Trump Tells the New York _Times_ to Identify Anonymous Op-Ed Writer > Sponsored content. 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Brief is TIME's Washington newsletter, written by senior correspondent Philip Elliott. It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. It reaches 85,000 subscribers with a 37.0% open rate as of August 2026. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. by [Jennifer Calfas](https://time.com/author/jennifer-calfas/) ## Jennifer Calfas Sep 6, 2018 12:59 AM UTC  US President Donald Trump speaks as he meets with the Emir of Kuwait Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah during an expanded bilateral meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on September 5, 2018 in Washington, DC. US President Donald Trump speaks as he meets with the Emir of Kuwait Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah during an expanded bilateral meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on September 5, 2018 in Washington, DC. Pool—Pool by [Jennifer Calfas](https://time.com/author/jennifer-calfas/) ## Jennifer Calfas Sep 6, 2018 12:59 AM UTC President Donald Trump asked the New York _Times_ to reveal the anonymous senior administration official who [penned a critical op-ed](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/05/opinion/trump-white-house-anonymous-resistance.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage) Wednesday, claiming the author’s identity must be shared for “National Security purposes.” In a tweet Wednesday evening, just hours after the _Times_ [published](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/05/opinion/trump-white-house-anonymous-resistance.html?action=click&module=Opinion&pgtype=Homepage) the unprecedented opinion piece, Trump doubled down on his criticism of the piece and called its author “gutless.” “Does the so-called ‘Senior Administration Official’ really exist, or is it just the Failing New York _Times_ with another phony source?” Trump tweeted. “If the GUTLESS anonymous person does indeed exist, the _Times_ must, for National Security purposes, turn him/her over to the government at once!” The perceived threat to national security posed by the op-ed was not immediately clear. > [](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1037485664433070080) Not long before the tweet Wednesday evening, Trump tweeted: “TREASON?” > [](https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1037464177269514240) The New York _Times_ op-ed came from an unnamed author identified as a “senior official in the Trump administration” who claimed to be a part of a group of administration officials working to combat Trump’s “agenda and his worst inclinations.” The scathing piece detailed how officials floated the idea of using the 25th Amendment to the Constitution to remove Trump from office, and referred to the “great lengths” administration staffers have gone to “keep bad decisions contained to the West Wing.” “The root of the problem is the president’s amorality,” the anonymous official wrote. “Anyone who works with him knows he is not moored to any discernible first principles that guide his decision making.” “We are incredibly proud to have published this piece, which adds significant value to the public’s understanding of what is going on in the Trump administration from someone who is in a position to know,” the _Times_ said in a statement to TIME. In the president’s initial response to the op-ed, Trump said it was “really a disgrace” and slammed the _Times_ for publishing it. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement that the author should resign. “He is not putting country first, but putting himself and his ego ahead of the will of the American people,” the statement said. “This coward should do the right thing and resign.” The controversial op-ed comes after excerpts were published from [veteran journalist Bob Woodward’s book](http://time.com/5386667/donald-trump-bob-woodward-book-mueller/) on the White House, detailing anecdotes of chaos and frustration inside the administration. 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