Major Garrett has covered the White House for three different major networks over four decades in journalism. Here’s a clear, verified look at his age, family, and the long career that led to his current role at CBS News.
Background
Major Elliott Garrett is CBS News’s chief Washington correspondent and the host of The Takeout, a weekly interview show on politics, policy, and pop culture. People search his name because of his decades-long career covering the White House across multiple networks, and because of his distinctive first name, which is his given name rather than a military title.
He was born in San Diego, California, and started his journalism career at regional newspapers before working his way up to national political reporting.
📌 Quick fact: Garrett hosted a podcast called Agent of Betrayal: The Double Life of Robert Hanssen, an investigation into the most damaging spy in FBI history.
Latest Update
Garrett continues to serve as CBS News’s chief Washington correspondent and host of The Takeout as of this writing. No new professional development beyond his ongoing CBS role has been independently confirmed as of today’s date. He has held the chief Washington correspondent title since December 2018.
Given his decades of experience across four major news organizations, any future career change involving Garrett would likely be treated as significant industry news, so readers should look to CBS News’s own announcements for the most reliable updates.
⚠️ Good to know: Several unofficial biography sites give wildly different net worth estimates for Garrett, ranging from roughly $1 million to $8 million. None of these figures come from a confirmed primary source.
Full Profile
Family and Early Life
Garrett was born Major Elliott Garrett on August 24, 1962, in San Diego, California. Details about his parents’ identities are not confirmed through a verifiable public source.
Garrett has said in interviews that his given first name, Major, has occasionally caused confusion among sources and colleagues who assume it’s a military title or a nickname rather than the name on his birth certificate, a small but recurring detail in profiles of his long career.
Career Path
Garrett began his career as a reporter for The Houston Post, the Las Vegas Review-Journal, and the Amarillo Globe-News. He worked as a congressional reporter and later deputy national editor for The Washington Times from 1990 to 1997, and as a senior editor and congressional correspondent for U.S. News and World Report, where he covered President Clinton’s impeachment.
He was a White House correspondent for CNN during the Bush and Clinton administrations before joining Fox News, where he served as senior White House correspondent and later chief White House correspondent from 2012 to 2018, covering two presidential elections, the Iraq War, and Congress. He then worked as chief White House correspondent for National Journal before joining CBS News as chief White House correspondent in November 2012, and became CBS News’s chief Washington correspondent in December 2018. He hosts The Takeout, a weekly multi-platform interview show.
He also hosted Agent of Betrayal: The Double Life of Robert Hanssen, a multi-part podcast investigation into the most damaging spy in FBI history, showing a range in his work beyond daily political coverage. During his years covering the White House for CBS News, he reported extensively on the administration’s response to ISIS and Ebola, as well as nuclear negotiations with Iran and the standoff with Russia over Ukraine.
Garrett’s four-decade career spans a wider range of major American news events than almost any other current Washington correspondent, having covered every U.S. president from George H.W. Bush through the present day in some reporting capacity.
Age
Garrett was born on August 24, 1962, making him 63 years old as of this article’s publish date.
Religion
Garrett’s religious beliefs are not publicly confirmed.
Spouse/Partner
Garrett was previously married to Julie Kirtz, a Fox News correspondent, from 1990 until their divorce; the couple has two children. He has been married to Lara Brown, a political scientist and director of the Graduate School of Political Management at George Washington University, since 2016. Together, he has three children.
Net Worth
Garrett’s exact net worth has not been officially disclosed. Unofficial estimates vary widely, so no specific figure is presented as confirmed fact.
Parents
Garrett’s parents’ identities are not confirmed through a verifiable public source.
Height
Garrett is commonly listed at around 6 feet 2 inches tall across unofficial sources.
Education
Garrett graduated from the University of Missouri in 1984 with a Bachelor of Journalism and a Bachelor of Science in political science.
Hometown/State of Origin
Garrett was born in San Diego, California.
Official Social Media
You can follow Major Garrett on X (formerly Twitter): @majorcbs.
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 1984 | Graduated from the University of Missouri |
| 1990 | Married Julie Kirtz |
| 2004–2008 | Senior White House correspondent for Fox News |
| 2012 | Joined CBS News as chief White House correspondent |
| 2016 | Married Lara Brown |
| 2018 | Became CBS News’s chief Washington correspondent |
Reader Questions (FAQ)
How old is Major Garrett?
Garrett was born on August 24, 1962, making him 63 years old as of this article’s publish date.
Is Major Garrett his real name?
Yes, Major is his given first name, not a military rank; his full name is Major Elliott Garrett.
Who is Major Garrett’s wife?
He has been married to Lara Brown, a political scientist at George Washington University, since 2016. He was previously married to Fox News correspondent Julie Kirtz.
What networks has Major Garrett worked for?
He has worked as a White House correspondent for CNN, Fox News, National Journal, and now CBS News, where he is chief Washington correspondent.
What show does Major Garrett host?
He hosts The Takeout, a weekly multi-platform interview show on politics, policy, and pop culture.
Where did Major Garrett go to college?
He graduated from the University of Missouri in 1984 with degrees in journalism and political science.
Has Major Garrett hosted any podcasts?
Yes, he hosted Agent of Betrayal: The Double Life of Robert Hanssen, an investigative podcast about the most damaging spy in FBI history.
What networks has Major Garrett covered the White House for?
He has served as a White House correspondent for CNN, Fox News, National Journal, and CBS News across multiple presidential administrations.
Was Major Garrett married before his current marriage?
Yes, he was previously married to Fox News correspondent Julie Kirtz, with whom he has two children, before marrying Lara Brown in 2016.
What did Major Garrett cover early in his career?
He started as a reporter for The Houston Post, the Las Vegas Review-Journal, and the Amarillo Globe-News before moving into national political journalism.
What show does Major Garrett host now?
He hosts The Takeout, a weekly multi-platform interview show covering politics, policy, and pop culture, alongside his correspondent duties.
Wrap-Up
Major Garrett’s career is one of the longer and more varied in Washington political journalism, spanning four major news organizations and multiple presidential administrations. Few correspondents can claim White House beat experience across as many networks as he has.
His personal life has followed its own long arc too, with two marriages, both to accomplished professionals in politics and media, and children from both relationships.
His hosting work on Agent of Betrayal, a deep-dive investigation into one of the most damaging espionage cases in FBI history, shows a willingness to take on long-form investigative projects outside his daily political reporting, a range that’s not always visible from his day-to-day Washington coverage alone.
What’s confirmed about Garrett traces a steady, decades-long climb through some of the most competitive beats in American journalism, culminating in his current role leading CBS News’s Washington coverage.
Given the wide range of net worth estimates attached to his name across unofficial sources, readers should treat his confirmed employment history, rather than any specific dollar figure, as the most reliable measure of his long career’s scope.
John Wood is the founder and lead editor of Biography Region. He researches and writes accurate, engaging biographies of celebrities, entrepreneurs, influencers, and public figures, delivering well-sourced, reader-focused content that informs and inspires.