Major Elliott Garrett (born August 24, 1962) is an American journalist who is chief Washington correspondent for

CBS News CBS News is the news division of the American television and radio service CBS. CBS News television programs include the ''CBS Evening News'', ''CBS Mornings'', news magazine programs '' CBS News Sunday Morning'', '' 60 Minutes'', and '' 48 H ...

. Garrett is the host of ''The Takeout'' podcast and was a correspondent for ''

National Journal ''National Journal'' is an advisory services company based in Washington, D.C., offering services in government affairs, advocacy communications, stakeholder mapping, and policy brands research for government and business leaders. It publishes da ...

''. Prior to joining ''National Journal'', he was the senior

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

correspondent for

Fox News The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...

. He covered the 2004 presidential election, the

War on terror The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international Counterterrorism, counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campa ...

, and the 2008 presidential election.

Early life and education

Garrett was born and raised in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

, California, where he attended James Madison High School. He graduated from the

University of Missouri The University of Missouri (Mizzou, MU, or Missouri) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Columbia, Missouri. It is Missouri's largest university and the flagship of the four-campus Universit ...

with a

Bachelor of Journalism The Bachelor of Journalism (B.J.) degree is a degree awarded at some universities to students who have studied journalism in a three or four year undergraduate program. In the United States, some schools that do not award the B.J. degree instead c ...

and a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

in 1984. He is a member of

Phi Gamma Delta Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Fiji, is a social fraternity with more than 144 active chapters and 10 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania, in 1848. Along with Phi Kappa Psi, Phi ...

Career

In the 1990s, Garrett was a senior editor and congressional correspondent for '' U.S. News & World Report'' and a congressional reporter for ''

The Washington Times ''The Washington Times'' is an American conservative daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., that covers general interest topics with a particular emphasis on national politics. Its broadsheet daily edition is distributed throughout ...

'' before joining

CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...

's White House team in early 2000 and

in 2002 as a general assignment reporter. There, he covered the 2004 election and served as the network's congressional correspondent. He has also been a White House correspondent for CNN and an award-winning reporter across the country for the ''

Houston Post The ''Houston Post'' was a newspaper that had its headquarters in Houston, Texas, United States. In 1995, the newspaper shut down, and its assets were purchased by the '' Houston Chronicle''. History Gail Borden Johnson founded the ''Houston ...

'', the ''

Las Vegas Review-Journal The ''Las Vegas Review-Journal'' is a daily subscription newspaper published in Las Vegas, Nevada, since 1909. It is the largest circulating daily newspaper in Nevada and one of two daily newspapers in the Las Vegas area. The ''Review-Journal'' ...

'', and the ''

Amarillo Globe-News The ''Amarillo Globe-News'' is a daily newspaper in Amarillo, Texas, owned by Gannett. The newspaper is based at downtown's FirstBank Southwest Tower, but is printed at a facility in Lubbock. History The current-day ''Globe-News'' is a combina ...

''. His articles have appeared in such magazines as ''

The Weekly Standard ''The Weekly Standard'' was an American neoconservative political magazine of news, analysis and commentary, published 48 times per year. Originally edited by founders Bill Kristol and Fred Barnes, the ''Standard'' had been described as a "red ...

'', ''

Washington Monthly ''Washington Monthly'' is a bimonthly, nonprofit magazine of United States politics and government that is based in Washington, D.C. The magazine is known for its annual ranking of American colleges and universities, which serves as an alternat ...

'', and ''

Mother Jones Mary G. Harris Jones (1837 (baptized) – November 30, 1930), known as Mother Jones from 1897 onwards, was an Irish-born American schoolteacher and dressmaker who became a prominent union organizer, community organizer, and activist. She h ...

''. Garrett covered President Barack Obama's presidential campaign. On January 13, 2009, Garrett became the senior White House correspondent for the

Fox News Channel The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...

. Garrett left Fox News on September 3, 2010, to join ''

''. His final day on Fox News was on ''

America Live with Megyn Kelly ''America Live with Megyn Kelly'' was an American news program that aired on the Fox News Channel. The show aired from February 1, 2010, to late 2013, and was hosted by Megyn Kelly, former co-host of '' America's Newsroom''. It aired 1:003:00 PM ...

''. At that time he was also a frequent guest commentator on

MSNBC MSNBC (originally the Microsoft National Broadcasting Company) is an American news-based pay television cable channel. It is owned by NBCUniversala subsidiary of Comcast. Headquartered in New York City, it provides news coverage and political ...

and on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

's ''

Face the Nation ''Face the Nation'' is a weekly news and morning public affairs program airing Sundays on the CBS radio and television network. Created by Frank Stanton in 1954, ''Face the Nation'' is one of the longest-running news programs in the history o ...

''. It was announced on ''Face the Nation'' on November 18, 2012, that Garrett would be joining

as Chief White House Correspondent. He was named CBS News Chief Washington Correspondent in December 2018. Garrett now hosts ''The Takeout,'' a weekly podcast about politics, public policy, and pop culture.

Controversies

In July 2015, Garrett made headlines when he asked Obama during a press conference why he was "content" with the

Iran Nuclear Deal The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA; fa, برنامه جامع اقدام مشترک , barnāmeye jāme'e eqdāme moshtarak (, ''BARJAM'')), commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal or Iran deal, is an agreement on the nuclear program ...

that left four Americans—

Amir Mirza Hekmati Amir Mirza Hekmati ( fa, امیر میرزا حکمتی); is a United States Marine veteran who was arrested in August 2011 for allegedly spying for the CIA in Iran. On January 9, 2012, he was sentenced to death for the charges. On March 5, 20 ...

Jason Rezaian Jason Rezaian ( fa, جیسون رضائیان; born on March 16, 1976) is an Iranian-American journalist who served as Tehran news bureau, bureau chief for ''The Washington Post''. He was convicted of espionage in a closed-door trial in Iran in 2 ...

Saeed Abedini Saeed Abedini ( fa, سعيد عابدينی, born 7 May 1980) is an Iranian American Christian pastor who was imprisoned in Iran in 2012 based on allegations that he compromised national security. During his imprisonment, Abedini became internati ...

, and

Robert Levinson Robert Alan Levinson (March 10, 1948 – presumed death before March 25, 2020) was an American former Drug Enforcement Administration (1970–1976) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (1976–1998) agent who disappeared on March 9, 2007, in Kish ...

—trapped in Iran. The President admonished Garrett by saying, "I’ve got to give you credit, Major, for how you craft those questions. The notion that I am 'content' as I celebrate with American citizens languishing in Iranian jails, Major, that's nonsense, and you should know better. Now, if the question is why we did not tie the negotiations to their release, think about the logic that creates. Suddenly, Iran realizes, 'You know what? Maybe we can get additional concessions out of the Americans by holding these individuals. While other Americans held by Iran were eventually released,

died while in Iranian custody.

Personal life

Garrett is married to Lara Brown and lives with his family in Washington, D.C.

Bibliography

* ''Common Cents'' (Little, Brown, 1995, ) * ''The Fifteen Biggest Lies in Politics'' (St. Martin's Griffin, 2000, ) * ''The Enduring Revolution: How the Contract with America Continues to Shape the Nation'' (

Crown Forum The Crown Publishing Group is a subsidiary of Penguin Random House that publishes across several fiction and non-fiction categories. Originally founded in 1933 as a remaindered books wholesaler called Outlet Book Company, the firm expanded int ...

, 2005, ) * ''The Enduring Revolution: The Inside Story of the Republican Ascendancy and Why It Will Continue'' (

Three Rivers Press Three Rivers Press is the trade paperback imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House. It publishes original paperback titles as well as paperback reprints of books issued initially in hardcover by the other Crown imprints ...

, 2006, ) *''Mr. Trump's Wild Ride: The Thrills, Chills, Screams, and Occasional Blackouts of an Extraordinary Presidency'' (

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, in the Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under si ...

, 2018, ) * ''The Big Truth: Upholding Democracy in the Age of "The Big Lie"'' (with David Becker) (Diversion Books, 2022, )

References

External links

*
Major Garrett
at CBS News * at Fox News * ** {{DEFAULTSORT:Garrett, Major 1962 births Living people People from San Diego Journalists from California American male non-fiction writers CBS News people Fox News people CNN people The Washington Times people Missouri School of Journalism alumni