A judge allowed the Pentagon to fire Stars and Stripes journalists.
Posted by The Lawfare Podcast, Checked
- Sources
- 4 support
- Said
- 1 time·
- Confidence
- 93%
The Lawfare PodcastSep 14, 2026
… Peter Beck and Senior Editors Anna Bower, Eric Columbus, Molly Roberts, and Roger Parloff to discuss an Afghan legal permanent resident deported less than 2 months after case is filed in the Alien Terrorist Removal Court, updates in the Grand Conspiracy, a judge allowing the Pentagon to fire Stars and Stripes journalists, developments in President Trump’s attack on mail voting, litigation over the use of SAVE data for elections, and more. You can find information on legal challenges to Trump administration actions here. …
Multiple reliable outlets report that U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden ruled on September 4, 2026 that the Pentagon could proceed with firing three Stars and Stripes journalists by denying their bid to block the firings while their lawsuit continues. The claim matches the extracted passage, and the later-dated sources do not dispute it.
What we found
Supports. The AP reports that a federal judge refused to block the Pentagon from firing three Stars and Stripes staff members, with McFadden finding the journalists unlikely to prove a First Amendment violation.[1]
Supports. NBC News and CBS News both report that McFadden allowed the Pentagon to proceed with terminating three journalists while their lawsuit continues.[2][3]
Supports. CNN reports that McFadden denied temporary restraining order requests from publisher Max Lederer, editor-in-chief Erik Slavin and reporter Lara Korte, allowing the Pentagon to move forward with their firings.[4]
Context. The ruling was a denial of temporary or preliminary relief, not a final merits decision, and CNN notes it was unclear whether the trio had actually been fired since the ruling.[4]
Sources
4 sources: 1 fact-checker, 3 tier 2
- 1Judge won't block Pentagon from firing Stars and Stripes ...apnews.com · fact-checker · cited for: supports
- 2Judge allows Pentagon to fire three Stars and Stripes journalistsnbcnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 3Judge lets Pentagon move forward with firing Stars and ...cbsnews.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports
- 4Federal judge allows Pentagon to fire three Stars and Stripes ... - CNNcnn.com · tier 2 · cited for: supports, context
Where this claim was made
Said in 1 published post
Related claims
- Judge Trevor McFadden declined to prevent the Department of Defense from firing Stars and Stripes journalists and the publication's publisher.True
- Pete Hegseth made a regulatory change repealing editorial independence that Stars and Stripes previously had.True
- The editor-in-chief and two reporters for Stars and Stripes were terminated after giving comments on CBS News regarding editorial independence.Mixed
- The Pentagon press corps has been kicked out of the Pentagon building.True
- Judge McFadden determined that the Stars and Stripes employees were acting within their official capacity when they gave the CBS News interview.True