Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s wife Jennifer is the latest civilian to get access to America’s sensitive military information.
On the heels of the Pentagon’s Signal leak scandal—in which Hegseth added a journalist to a group chat discussing war plans—The Wall Street Journal reported that Jennifer Rauchet has been spotted at high-level military intelligence meetings on at least two occasions.
Although it is not uncommon for the spouses of senior officials to have low-level security clearance, a Pentagon spokesperson declined to say whether Rauchet has any clearances, the WSJ reported.
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According to two officials present at the meeting, Rauchet —a former Fox News producer who has been married to Hegseth since 2019—was present during a March 6 Pentagon meeting with U.K. Secretary of Defense Johm Healey. The meeting, which included the head of the U.K.’s armed forces, was scheduled to discuss President Trump’s decision to pause military aid and intelligence-sharing with Ukraine amid its ongoing war with Russia. Rauchet also reportedly had a seat at the table during a meeting at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization headquarters in Bels last month where defense allies discussed military support for Ukraine. Officials familiar with such meetings said confidential information is frequently shared.
A Family Affair
The WSJ report comes as Hegseth looks to restore faith that he can keep America’s military secrets safe after a journalist was added to a group chat discussing military airstrikes in Yemen. Republicans have divided over the security implications of the incident while at least one House Democrat has questioned Hegseth’s sobriety leading up to the info leak.
That seemingly hasn’t stopped Hegseth from continuing to lean on his family inner circle for support. The Associated Press reported that Hegseth, 44, has also had his younger brother Phil by his side, who serves as the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) liaison.
A DHS spokesperson confirmed that Phil has accompanied Hegseth on a trip to meet with the department’s law enforcement representatives across the Pacific. The trip included pressing the flesh with UFC icon Conor McGregor and jetting to Hawaii, Guam, the Philippines, and Japan on a Boeing 747.
Federal law prohibits government officials from hiring their relatives, but the sibling Hegseths could have skated the rules by not directly working in separate departments, the Associated Press reported.
Hegseth met Rauchet, his third wife, during his time as an anchor on Fox & Friends. According to the U.S. Sun, she was married twice before marrying Hegseth, and the couple shares a 7-year-old daughter. According to her LinkedIn profile, Rauchet’s last role was as a producer for Fox.
Sean Davis, CEO and co-founder of the right-wing The Federalist, attacked the WSJ report online by suggesting former First Lady Jill Biden ran meetings in former President Joe Biden’s stead.
“Sorry, @WSJ, but you don’t get to play this game after yawning when Jill Biden ran cabinet meetings because Joe Biden’s brain was pudding—a fact you helped cover up for years,” he tweeted.
