Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is reportedly trying to save his own skin by cheering on President Trump’s war in Iran and painting it as an astounding success.
“He’s very trigger happy,” a source familiar with the defense secretary’s thinking told CNN Tuesday, adding that Hegseth appears to believe “blowing s–t up” offers him the best chance of holding onto his job.
Before the war began on Feb. 28, Hegseth had largely been stuck on the “back bench” of Trump’s Cabinet officials, according to multiple sources.
Hegseth—who in his former capacity as a Fox News host consistently railed against military entanglements abroad—has made a series of devastating blunders since assuming his post last year, most notably sharing highly sensitive details of U.S. strikes against Iranian-backed rebels in Yemen with a journalist who’d been accidentally added to a group chat on Signal.
More recently, he’s faced criticism for his briefings on the Iran war, during which he’s seemed to focus more on complaining about critical press coverage than providing the public with crucial information on where the conflict is headed. Hegseth is due to hold his first press briefing since March 19 on Tuesday, just a day after an explosive Financial Times report alleged that one of his financial brokers sought major investments in defense companies in the run-up to the war.
In meetings held before the final decision was made to launch the war, Hegseth is said to have not only encouraged Trump to move forward but also played down the risks of the conflict spreading out of control.
Now, according to sources cited by CNN, the president is counting on him to keep justifying the war.
“Once the president made the decision, [Hegseth] was the No.1 supporter of it, as he should be,” a senior White House aide told the network.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told CNN: “If CNN is writing a story about Secretary Hegseth being a cheerleader for the U.S. military — then absolutely yes. And President Trump is equally as proud to serve as commander in chief.”
Hegseth has chiefly achieved this by trumpeting U.S. military gains to the public, as well as criticizing media outlets for making “the president look bad” by reporting aspects of the conflict that have proven less successful, like an alleged U.S. strike on an Iranian school that killed dozens of children earlier this month.
“The president wants Pete to be who he is, which is his combative, patriotic and outspoken nature,” one official told CNN. “The president appreciates that about him and wants him to keep doing that.”
Another denied that Hegseth’s newfound enthusiasm for foreign military entanglements has anything to do with criticism of his conduct in office to date. “The president is very pleased with him, and was before the Iran situation,” they said.
The Daily Beast has contacted the Pentagon for comment on this story. A spokesperson previously said on X that the FT’s reporting about defense company investments on Hegseth’s behalf is “entirely false and fabricated.”
