The circle of top advisers in Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s orbit has shrunk in recent days to little more than his wife, lawyer, and two lower-level officials — leaving the Pentagon’s lead office without longtime expertise or clear direction.

Hegseth’s decision to fire three senior aides last week and reassign his chief of staff has blown a hole in his leadership team, severing essential lines of communication across the department and leading to fears about dangerous slip-ups such as weapons program delays.

The wholesale turnover just 100 days into Hegseth’s tenure has been remarkable for its speed. And it has left the first-time government official without trusted staff who understand Washington — just as he faces fallout from a series of scandals that have led to rampant speculation inside the building about how long he’ll keep his job.

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/04/24/hegseth-pentagon-leadership-vacuum-00308620

https://archive.ph/mEJye

 

I don't understand how this went wrong. What is the problem with hiring someone who has no experience of managing a large institution but is telegenic  and works out a lot? If there were a movie that needed to cast someone to play Defense Chief, he'd by my choice.  Not only that, but as one Trumpist pointed out elsewhere, he has a lovely wife and children. Strange. And sad.

 

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt (22 APR) said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is doing “a tremendous job” and “is bringing a monumental change to the Pentagon,” which she said had prompted a “smear campaign” against him.

What happens the 57 thousandth time the naughty child yells Wolf!! Wolf!! ?? That's right. They get ignored, and rightly so.

 

I have total confidence in Hegseth and zero in smear campaigning msm consumers bonkers claims.

 

As Ms. Leavitt said earlier this month during a tariff dustup:

"Boys will be boys, and we will let their public sparring continue ..."

Such things happen now amongst a group of warriors in a warrior culture.

The Secretary of the Navy pays his respects to members of the US Navy who sacrificed their lives on the 7th June, 1941, the day the Roosevelt promisted would live on as a Day of Infamy. Not once, but twice, then someone pointed out the screw up.

 

 

On 4/25/2025 at 8:16 AM, placeholder said:

Not only that, but as one Trumpist pointed out elsewhere, he has a lovely wife and children.

Several actually (wives and children) over the years!

A post using nicknames has been removed

If it has to be explained to the person in charge that if you get rid of all the experienced staff at the same time, then you are talking to somebody who is in the wrong place, the wrong job, the wrong time, and who should never have been given the job in the first place.

 

to use an Irish epithet, the men is a <deleted> eejit.

 

He was however, put into that position by an even bigger <deleted> eejit.

https://news.sky.com/story/pete-hegseths-order-to-cancel-weapons-to-ukraine-caught-white-house-off-guard-says-report-13362950

 

Quote

 

US defence secretary Pete Hegseth cancelled military aid to Ukraine without a direct order from Donald Trump about a week after he was sworn in as president, according to a report.

The pause led to the US Transportation Command (TRANSCOM) stopping 11 flights from US bases in Delaware and Qatar which were loaded with artillery shells and other weaponry and had been bound for Ukraine, according to Reuters.

Hours later, Ukrainian and Polish officials then asked Washington what was happening but top national security officials in the White House, Pentagon and US State Department were unable to provide answers, said the news agency.

 

 

 

Sounds like a "Will no one rid me of this troublesome priest?" style of government (famously, when Kin Henry II muttered these words, 4 knights took that as a direct order to murder Thomas Beckett, the Archbishop of Canterbury. The knights, realising afterwards they had screwed up, went on the lam to Scotland).