Pete Hegesth’s Venmo is publicly viewable and showing his full list of friends and contacts, according to a report.
While Hegseth’s transactions are private, his list of friends on the mobile payment service isn’t—and it’s a who’s who of Washington bigwigs, defense contractors, and healthcare executives, The American Prospect reported.
A name appearing on Hegseth’s friends list could mean he has transacted with the person, but Venmo also has an option to automatically add phone contacts as friends in the app. At the very least, it suggests that the two people are in touch.
All over the list are executives from up-and-coming Silicon Valley defense contractors Palantir (founded by Republican superdonor Peter Thiel) and Anduril, both of which already have multimillion-dollar contracts with the DOD. They could be poised for additional deals under Hegseth’s regime.
His other ties to Silicon Valley include Google’s former director of law enforcement and information security, a former advisor to Thiel’s hedge fund, and former Sen. Scott Brown—who since leaving Congress has become the leader of Competitiveness Coalition, a group that advocates against anti-trust action.
In addition to defense and tech, the healthcare industry is well represented in Hegseth’s contacts. The friends list features executives at UnitedHealth Group, including a vice president, product director, and public affairs consultant.
Hegseth has long pushed for the privatization of Veterans Affairs, the government agency that supplies health insurance for military veterans. As an advisor to the White House during Trump’s first term, he even reportedly advocated outsourcing more of the agency’s work.
While Hegseth doesn’t oversee VA as defense secretary, he could directly attempt to privatize Tricare, the health insurance option for active duty military members.
The media figures in Hegseth’s rolodex appear to span the political spectrum. Right-wing outlets like The Daily Wire, The Washington Free Beacon, and Fox News (where Hegseth used to work) are better represented in the friends list. But there also journalists from Politico and The New York Times, too.
Hegseth also appears to be chummy with far-right conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer, retired mixed martial artist Nik Lentz, and George W. Bush’s former national security advisor Mark Pfeifle.
The Department of Defense declined to comment to the Daily Beast on The American Prospect’s report.
Hegseth is a former Fox News host who sparked controversy as Trump’s pick for defense secretary after a number of scandals broke, including an allegation of sexual assault (which Hegseth repeatedly denied).
Nevertheless, the Senate confirmed Hegseth by a single vote last month.
