A PowerPoint training slide listing former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and retired Gen. David Petraeus among "insiders" who threatened national security was in use for 18 months at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, before Army officials pulled it out of circulation.
The image includes photos of Clinton and Petraeus along with Maj. Nidal Hasan (who shot and killed 13 people at Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009), Aaron Alexis (who shot and killed 12 people at the Washington Navy Yard in 2013), Chelsea Manning (convicted in 2013 for leaking documents while an active-duty soldier) and Edward Snowden (who leaked classified National Security Agency surveillance information in 2013). It was posted Sunday on the U.S Army W.T.F! moments Facebook page:
The slide came to the attention of Army Training and Doctrine Command on Monday, TRADOC spokesman Maj. Thomas Campbell said, and it was pulled from the presentation, which is part of a quarterly training requirement, "promptly."
"As is common with Army training requirements, the local unit was given latitude to develop their own training products to accomplish the overall training
objective," Campbell said in a statement provided to Army Times and other media outlets. "This particular presentation had not been reviewed or approved by the unit's leadership, and does not reflect the position of the Army."
Campbell could not provide specifics regarding how many soldiers had received the training, which unit or individuals had created the slide, and whether any punishments or investigations were conducted, saying only that officials have "addressed the issue with our personnel." Questions sent via email to Fort Leonard Wood public affairs officials were referred to Campbell.
The slide's text addresses Alexis, Hasan, Manning and Snowden by name, then singles out "careless or disgruntled employees" as potential threats.
The New York Times first published details regarding Clinton's use of a private email address in March 2015, around the time Campbell said the slide was created. It wasn't until last month that FBI director James Comey categorized the Democratic presidential nominee's actions as "extremely careless" when announcing his bureau's decision not to press charges regarding the matter.
Petraeus retired from the Army in 2011 and resigned from his position atop the CIA in 2012 amid allegations that he'd provided classified documents to his mistress, who was also his biographer. He pleaded guilty to mishandling classified information in 2015.
The Army recently strengthened its insider-threat training protocols, requiring more soldiers to receive in-person presentations on the topic instead of completing computer-based coursework.
Kevin Lilley is the features editor of Military Times.
