Pentagon Is In 'Total Chaos'
Category: News & Politics
Via: john-russell • last year • 31 commentsBy: Taegan Goddard Leave (Political Wire)
"The Pentagon is in 'total chaos' and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is unlikely to remain in his role, according to its former top spokesperson, who painted a scene of dysfunction, backstabbing and continuous missteps at the highest levels of the department," Politico reports.Said John
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
April 20, 2025 at 7:47 pm EDT By Taegan GoddardLeave a Comment
"The Pentagon is in 'total chaos' and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is unlikely to remain in his role, according to its former top spokesperson, who painted a scene of dysfunction, backstabbing and continuous missteps at the highest levels of the department," Politico reports.
Said John Ullyot: "The building is in disarray under Hegseth's leadership. The dysfunction is now a major distraction for the president — who deserves better from his senior leadership."
As if the ‘Signalgate’ scandal – in which a journalist from The Atlantic was added to a group chat discussing upcoming strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen - wasn’t bad enough, US defense secretary Pete Hegseth is facing even more scrutiny now after his former spokesman has penned a piece for Politico talking about “total chaos at the Pentagon”.
John Ullyot resigned from the Department of Defense last week. He was a senior communications adviser to Donald Trump when he launched his 2016 presidential campaign, and held senior positions at the National Security Council and Department of Veterans Affairs during the Republican’s first term.
From the very beginning of the piece, published on Sunday, Ullyot doesn’t hold back, saying a “month of total chaos” at the department has ranged from “leaks of sensitive operational plans to mass firings” and that Trump “deserves better from his senior leadership”.
He also says that it is “hard to see” Hegseth remaining as defense secretary “for much longer”.
Yikes.
He continues: “Even strong backers of the secretary like me must admit: the last month has been a full-blown meltdown at the Pentagon – and it’s becoming a real problem for the administration.”
Ullyot then lists a number of different crises, starting with the aforementioned blunder involving Signal.
“Once the Signalgate story broke, Hegseth followed horrible crisis-communications advice from his new public affairs team, who somehow convinced him to try to debunk the reporting through a vague, Clinton-esque non-denial denial that ‘nobody was texting war plans.’
“This was a violation of PR rule number one — get the bad news out right away,” he writes.
Other issues detailed by Ullyot include Hegseth reportedly bringing his wife “to two meetings with foreign military counterparts where sensitive information was discussed” (as reported by The Wall Street Journal ); a top secret briefing for Elon Musk on China, set up by the Pentagon (reported by The New York Times ); and another report of a Signal scandal, this time involving Hegseth’s wife and brother ( The New York Times again).
The ex-official adds: “Unfortunately, after a terrible month, the Pentagon focus is no longer on war-fighting, but on endless drama.”
Ullyot’s damning intervention has since shocked Trump critics, leading one to declare that the Republican’s administration is “collapsing”:
“Hire a clown, expect a circus,” commented another:
A third joked Hegseth’s management wouldn’t be tolerated at KFC:
And Democratic senators have called on Hegseth to quit, including Michigan senator Elissa Slotkin , Connecticut senator Chris Murphy , and the party’s Senate leader Chuck Schumer :
Hegseth has not yet responded to Ulloyt's criticism.
But you all were good with Biden brining in his nurse.
So much fabricated outrage on this.
Well, Schumer’s outrage is genuine.
So we find the new word of the week is "chaos". [Deleted.]
[✘] Parroting talking points given to them.
The "News" media must get a memo with the word of the week and how many times it needs the be used per article or show. Two days later the DNC puts out a memo in case anyone didn't catch on to what the new word is.
do you think that the "right' does not polly want a hippocracker or someting like that, 4, i ashore you they do, and then overdue it again.
What adjectives or adverbs would you say were appropriate for 47's first hundred days ? Cause chaotic seems rather apropos to me.
And just like parroting "racist" and "fascist" they really don't know the definition and will continue to use it as if it means something.
What can he say? Another Clintonesque type of denial? Hire the Three Stooges as his public affairs team?
White House looking to replace Pete Hegseth as defense secretary : NPR
The White House has begun the process of looking for a new secretary of defense, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly.
NPR has reached out to the White House for comment.
In March, Hegseth shared details about action against Houthi targets in Yemen in a Signal chat with top White House officials that accidentally included a journalist.
In the last few weeks, four senior advisers to Hegseth have left abruptly, some accused of leaking. They have all released public statements suggestion infighting within the Department of Defense.
This breaking story will be updated.
Appoint an alcoholic clown, expect a chaotic circus.
Whether you realize it or not, you just described the Harris campaign to a tee.
Harris is an alcoholic?
In addition to being a babbling idiot.
I wonder how many times the right has resorted to calling out the left here for perceived deflections. Harris is the last place I would have expected this conversation to go. That is the ultimate deflection. I honestly did not know she was still living rent free in your collective heads.
You made the conversation about appointing an alcoholic to a position they aren't qualified to hold.
And that's a shame. She's probably got nothing left in her career and she will live rent free in their heads until they die
Hillary has.
I can't agree with that. I'm tired of old people running the country. I want fresh blood
Alcoholics do stupid shit in their fog. Mama’s boy Pete is no exception.
this is what i was talking about
oh....still in the weekend beer fog
Embattled Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth lashed out at The New York Times following a report that he was responsible for a second alleged security breach after last month’s Signalgate controversy.
Hegseth is alleged to have shared details of a sensitive attack against Yemen in a second Signal app group chat with his family last month, as the Times reported on Sunday:
Hegseth, festooned with his signature American flag pocket square, was interviewed by a C-SPAN reporter on the White House lawn Monday morning just as the traditional Easter Egg Roll was about to embark.
“ Do you want to say, sir, about the signal chat controversy?” he was asked.
“You know, what a big surprise that a bunch of, a few leakers get fired and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out from the same media that peddled the Russia hoax, won’t give back their Pulitzers. They’ve got Pulitzers for a bunch of lies, Pulitzers for a bunch of lies, and on hoaxes time and time and again, and as they peddle those lies, no one ever calls them on it,” Hegseth replied.
“See, this is what the media does. They take anonymous sources from disgruntled former employees and then they try to slash and burn people and ruin their reputations. Not going to work with me,” he added. “Because we’re changing the Defense Department, putting the Pentagon back in the hands of war fighters, and anonymous smears from disgruntled former employees on old news doesn’t matter.”
“So I’m happy to be here at the Easter Egg Roll with my dad and my kids because this is what we’re doing it for. These kids right here. This is why we’re fighting the fake news media,” continued Hegseth. “This is why we’re fighting slash-and-burn Democrats. This is where we’re finding hoaxsters, hoaxers. This group, no, no, this group right here, full of hoaxers that peddle anonymous sources from leakers with axes to grind. And then you put it all together as if it’s some news story. And when we know it, we know exactly what it is.”
“So I’m really proud of what we’re doing. For the president, fighting hard across the board, and I’m gonna go roll some Easter eggs with my kids. Thank you very much. Have spoken to the president and we are gonna continue fighting on the same page all the way,” he concluded.
Isn't that pocket square against flag etiquette?
Adding your wife and brother to your chats discussing war plans? Wow....that was a hanging offense when I was in
Looks like a handkerchief in his coat pocket to me.......
looks like what he uses to polish his helmet ...
I thought he paid strippers and hookers to do that. His roofie dates aren’t good at manual labor.
Roofie dates aren't much good except for just lying there
ok...that was a really bad joke
... no foreplay needed and no complaints about duration. all my dates 20 years ago would supply their own ...
Um....they brought their own roofies?
... yeah, but they'd make me take the viagra tablet first, then I'd take the roofie ...
Just another down right embarrassment for ALL of US