Pentagon in Peril: The Unraveling of Pete Hegseth
By Jason Collins
Editor’s note: The opinions expressed here are those of the authors. View more opinion on ScoonTV
It’s no secret that Donald Trump’s new cabinet members have caused a stir, but there’s one man who seems to have outdone them all in an impressive feat. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth hasn’t been in his role for that long, and chaos is already swirling around him and the Pentagon. From sharing important military information twice, mass firing, to screaming at Pentagon staff and managing to cause confusion in three separate continents, Hegseth appears to be writing a playbook for disaster.
In a few months, Hegseth has managed to turn the nation’s defense institution into a hotbed of recklessness and dysfunction. Is this just growing pains caused by inexperience? I’ll take a deep dive into the potential unraveling of America’s most vital institution under the hands of Hegseth.
Who is Pete Hegseth?
Pete Hegseth is someone who’s used to being in the spotlight. In 2014, he became a contributor for Fox News, and in 2016, he was an advisor for Trump. During the years of 2017 and 2024, he was a co-host of Fox & Friends Weekends, and in November 2024, he was tapped for Secretary of Defense, quite the job promotion, where a contentious narrow vote confirmed him.
But behind this author and news reporter was a dark past that perhaps was a precursor of what was to come. Leading up to his confirmation, Senators had received an affidavit from Hegseth’s former sister-in-law revealing his history of verbal abuse and controlling behavior, according to a Vanity Fair report.
Hegseth’s lawyers dismissed these claims, although the latest reports of the chaos inside the Pentagon suggest that this behavior might not be entirely false. According to NBC News, Hegseth was furious about leaks of an approved military briefing for Elon Musk on China. The Wall Street Journal was the first to report that Hegseth had yelled at Adm. Chris Grady, the acting chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, threatened him with a polygraph to find out if he leaked the info, which is pretty rich coming from the guy who leaked sensitive military information not once but twice!
Chaos at the Pentagon
The trouble at the Pentagon is more than just leaked military information; a lot is going on.
John Ullyot, a former top spokesman at the Defense Department, summed up Hegseth’s time in his role, saying,
From leaks of sensitive operational plans to mass firings, the dysfunction is now a major distraction for the president, who deserves better from his senior leadership.
Hegseth caused major waves by abruptly firing several top officials, including his chief of staff, Joe Kasper, deputy chief of staff Darin Selnick, and senior adviser Dan Caldwell. Ullyot was not fired but chose to leave his role. What was once the most hierarchical and disciplined institution is now embroiled in fractured morale and a growing sense of unease.
Then Hegseth added even more fuel to the fire when he announced in April that he was ending the Defense Department’s Women, Peace and Security program, calling it “another woke divisive/social justice/Biden initiative that overburdens our commanders and troops — distracting from our core task: WAR-FIGHTING,” on social media. The act is a Trump 45 policy, which was signed by him in 2017 and spearheaded by his daughter, Ivanka Trump.
Kyleanne Hunter, a Marine Corps veteran and national security expert, commented on Hegseth’s concerning decision and clarified that it is not a woke program. According to CNN, “The program ensured that the system takes into account women’s needs and women’s perspectives in the development of personnel policy, equipment, material, all of the things across the spectrum.”
Hegseth’s most public mistake was sharing military information like the timings and target of an attack in Yemen to a Signal group chat. Hegseth also bypassed the Pentagon’s security protocols to have an internet connection set up in his office, known as a dirty line. This internet connection does not have the security protocols or filters as do the Pentagon’s secured lines. It was revealed that he did this a second time using his personal phone to send sensitive information about U.S. military operations in Yemen to a Signal group chat that included his wife and brother. This happened after an aide even warned him about being careful not to share sensitive information on unsecured communications systems.
But that’s not all. A Reuters report revealed that Hegseth managed to cause confusion on three separate continents over a verbal order to ground planes flying military supplies to Ukraine. The grounded flights in Qatar had Ukraine panicking about where the supplies were, and this confusion spread all the way back to the White House.
From the start, Hegseth admitted that he would be a disruptor; he would follow Trump’s orders to root out leftist “woke” policies and focus on warfighting. A source familiar with Hegseth’s line of thinking told Axios that Hegseth’s focus on warfighting is needed.
The standard-issue SECDEFs have degraded our readiness, our lethality, and our ability to win wars. There’s never been a singular focus on the warfighter, and that’s why we’re losing wars and deterrence capabilities.
The problem is that despite his intentions, his role as a disruptor is working against him.
An anonymous U.S. defense official told Reuters that the Pentagon could run itself with basic policy guidance from elected officials under normal circumstances, but now the confusion surrounding the leadership in the building has eroded this ability. The source admits that Hegseth has created a climate of uncertainty within the institution.
What does this mean? Will the people in the Pentagon ignore Hegseth and wait out the next four years? Hegseth believes that the size of the staff can influence victory on the battlefield, so some Pentagon staff won’t need to wait out the four years with looming cuts. For others like Ullyot, who was a loyal staff member at the Defense Department, resigning might be the faster option than waiting for Hegseth to finish his term or be removed.
Trump Allies Are Starting to Take Notice of Hegseth’s Chaos
Ullyot sums up Hegseth’s performance as Secretary of Defense,
…the last month has been a full-blown meltdown at the Pentagon — and it’s becoming a real problem for the administration.
According to a U.S. official and anonymous source, NBC News reported that Trump had phoned Hegseth to tell him he did not approve of him texting information about Yemen and apparently called it childish. While the White House may have publicly defended Hegseth, behind the scenes, it paints a very different picture.
Politico reported that a senior GOP official said, although Trump publicly exonerated Hegseth, “privately, there is a lot of concern about his judgment, more than with Waltz.” Another person close to the White House said this chaos is because of his inexperience and pointed out,
What happens when Hegseth needs to manage a real crisis?
Dozens of Democrats are calling for his resignation, and Senate Armed Services Committee leaders have launched a bipartisan probe into the leaks.
So, how secure is Hegseth’s future as Secretary of Defense? Despite his mess-ups and the fact that everything he touches turns to chaos, his job seems safe for now, as Trump reportedly told him to keep fighting. While Trump’s public show of support may keep him in his post now, the growing chorus of concern from those within Washington and Trump’s orbit makes it clear his position is precarious.
The bigger question is, does Hegseth even have the skill set to succeed in this role? While he does have media instincts as a political commentator and Army National Guard veteran, managing over 30,000 personnel, bureaucracy, and global responsibilities will require deep institutional knowledge and strategic discipline. So far, this is not something we’ve seen. Instead, we’ve seen rash decisions and chaotic communication. If Hegseth hopes to succeed in this role and weather the storm he’s created, he will need to surround himself with competent advisors. Lacking those, odds are, the next crisis for Hegseth is looming on the horizon of a turbulent world.
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