'No Veteran's Record Is Safe'

Friday, September 26, 2025

New Jersey's already heated governor's race was thrown into chaos Thursday after a branch of the National Archives admitted to releasing Democrat Mikie Sherrills military files with personal information to an ally of her Republican challenger.

Posted by LampLighter at 07:43 PM | 4 COMMENTS | permalink

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More from the article ...

... Sherrill, a former Navy helicopter pilot and now a four-term congresswoman, was not allowed to walk with her Naval Academy classmates in 1994 as punishment connected to a high-profile scandal in which more than 100 midshipmen cheated on an exam, as detailed in a report by the New Jersey Globe on Thursday.

Sherrill was not accused in the cheating scandal, and said in a statement she did not cheat but was barred from the event because she failed to report classmates who were involved.

Around the same time Thursday, CBS News reported a branch of the National Archives released a mostly un-redacted version of Sherrill's military records to an ally of Ciattarelli, the GOP candidate running against Sherrill to succeed outgoing Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy in a closely watched race.

That could, according to the report, violate the Privacy Act of 1974 and exemptions under the Freedom of Information Act.

The news outlet made the discovery while investigating whether Sherrill was linked to the cheating scandal. ...

#1 | Posted by LampLighter at 2025-09-26 07:45 PM

Local reporting ...

Calls for criminal investigation into release of Mikie Sherrill's military records
abc7ny.com

... The race for governor in the Garden State exploded on Thursday into ugly accusations of dirty tricks and alleged leaks.

As Republican Jack Ciattarelli visited voters in Hunterdon County, the National Archives admitted it had wrongfully released the military records of his opponent, Democrat Mikie Sherrill.

They revealed that the congressmember and war veteran was barred from walking in her 1994 Naval Academy graduation for failing to report classmates who had cheated on an exam.

Sherrill addressed the leak of her military records at a town hall Thursday night, blaming her opponent.

"To have a guy I'm running against who will stop at nothing to illegally obtain records, it's beyond the pale," she said. ...

Then there's this ...

Trump's Hostile Takeover of the National Archives -- and Our Nation's History
americanoversight.org

... As his administration takes a sledgehammer to the federal government, the Trump administration is threatening the independence and functioning of the agency charged with maintaining valuable historical records. The takeover -- by a president who has openly defied the law and disdained the principle that government records belong to the people -- endangers not just the preservation of documents, but also our history. ...