Existence of group chat including Hegseth, his wife and others prompt calls for defense secretary to step down

A former top Pentagon spokesperson has slammed Pete Hegseth’s leadership of the department of defense, as pressure mounts on the US’s top military official following reports of a second Signal chatroom used to discuss sensitive military operations.

John Ullyot, who resigned last week after initially serving as Pentagon spokesperson, said in a opinion essay published by Politico on Sunday that the Pentagon has been overwhelmed by staff drama and turnover in the initial months of the second Trump administration.

Ullyot called the situation a “full-blown meltdown” that could cost Hegseth, a 44-year-old former Fox News host and National Guard officer, his job as defense secretary.

    • Lit
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      1712 days ago

      The one who gave him that job needs to be held accountable as well.

      • ceoofanarchism
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        7412 days ago

        Yep its rather disgusting how lots of people frame these things to just criticize his unprofessionalism and gloss over and ignore the war crimes.

        • @[email protected]
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          912 days ago

          Probably because criticizing the US for war crimes leads to Democrats too

          There are reasons the US doesn’t give a shit about the ICC

        • @[email protected]
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          12 days ago

          Considereding the Hague invasion clause is still in place in the U.S.A it’s not surprising.

          No one has ever been meaningfully punished there for war crimes or mass murder but if you’re incompetent/ a leaker the state department is on your ass quick.

          I mean ffs the democratic party threw anti genocide protestors under the bus rather then critique Israel over its ongoing genocide. It’s honestly just a reflection of what seems to be the average American mentality.

        • @[email protected]
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          1312 days ago

          rampant war crimes aren’t surprising; the US has been doing that for forever. But there used to be the veneer of competence, so I understand why that’s the part that’s getting the focus.

          • @[email protected]
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            11 days ago

            At least in the time of Obama they changed the definition of “Killed Enemy Combatant” to be “Every dead male of military age” to make the collateral casualty numbers of their “targetted” drone murders in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan look less outrageous.

            The current bunch don’t even care enough or are competent enough to manage the optics by “adjusting” a few definitions to shift the counts.

            Mind you, for those on the receiving end of the bombings, the effects are still the same.

    • @[email protected]
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      312 days ago

      There’s a joke here about his wife and his brother getting sucked in, but I haven’t figured it out yet.

  • @[email protected]
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    4911 days ago

    Susan Collins told me he learned from his first mistake though. I’m starting to think he didn’t.

  • @[email protected]
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    3912 days ago

    Others do and HAVE been court martialed for less. Like no hyperbole, you are fucked if you are anyone else.

    • @[email protected]
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      3311 days ago

      That’s what I can’t get over. I mean sure, we know double standards are rife in this administration but OMG how is the entire security community and leadership (looking at you, Congress) not absolutely losing their minds at this? Didn’t they send a SWAT team or something after one of the War Thunder forum leakers for posting a simple manual?! This is just insane.

  • @[email protected]
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    1412 days ago

    Trump really hasn’t fired anyone yet, has he? Strap in, Pete. It’s gonna be a rough week at the office.

    • @[email protected]
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      12 days ago

      No, he’s fired an IRS director because one of the other members of the legion of doom pointed out that Elon’s pick investigated J6ers or something

    • Monkey With A Shell
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      512 days ago

      There where a couple women in charge of military divisions, head of the coast guard was one I think. I’m sure there have been plenty that he sees as DEI that got tossed without a lot of reporting.

      • @[email protected]
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        712 days ago

        Oh, I meant people he installed but yeah, he’s been running rampant through “Biden’s people”

        • @[email protected]
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          512 days ago

          Pretty sure he got rid of some of his first term appointees. Maybe some inspectors general and he may have railed against a judicial appointee or three as a “radical Marxist”?

          • @[email protected]
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            512 days ago

            lol, did he really call his SC appointees “radical Marxists”? I just can’t keep up anymore

          • @[email protected]
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            211 days ago

            General Milley was his first term appointee for Chair of the Joint Chiefs, and one of the first things Trump did in his second term was to strip Milley of his security clearance, security detail, and even his placement of his portrait with the other former chairs.

            Jerome Powell was Trump’s pick for Chair of the Federal Reserve, replacing Yellen (the first time that a Fed chair had not gotten a second term, and Trump has been clamoring for the power to fire him.

    • @[email protected]
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      311 days ago

      He’s fired a bunch of lower level officials.

      His pick for acting US Attorney for SDNY (basically Manhattan) was fired a few weeks later for refusing to drop charges against Eric Adams.

      The acting IRS commissioner has changed over 5 times in the 90 days of this current presidency, including the most recent firing of a guy that was too close to Elon (in some kind of Bessent-Musk feud), just a few days after his appointment. The previous acting commissioner was fired for refusing to illegally share IRS data with DHS to help with immigration enforcement.

      And the current turmoil in the Pentagon is the firings of people he appointed to these positions. It’s a mess.

    • @[email protected]
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      1612 days ago

      "Signal group chat leaked that a bombing run of Vancouver is planned. Chat was leaked by Hesgeths mom, who didn’t know why she was added and just wanted to ask questions about when would be a good time to buy eggs.

      In response, Hesgeth blamed the media for reporting on things and stuff."

    • @[email protected]
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      1912 days ago

      Me too, until i realize there might still be an attempt, and it will be extremely stupid in planning.

      • @[email protected]
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        912 days ago

        “What do you mean this isn’t Greenland, Captain?! If it isn’t Greenland, then where are we? I mean, look at how green everything here is, it must be Greenland, right? Falkland Islands? What’s that??”

        • @[email protected]
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          612 days ago

          I mean, that’s kinda what blitzkrieg was. Just give your mechanized units a bunch of meth and tell them to just push as far as they can as fast as they can with no coordination. Worked to take France.

      • Diplomjodler
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        512 days ago

        The excuse will be that there was one trans person in the invasion force.

    • Sixty
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      11 days ago

      As Canadians, absolutely.

      Plus their behavior in regards to snubbing states during environmental disasters and gutting emergency response/aid relief would do wonders for any displaced angry guerilla Canadians in this hypothetical.*

  • @[email protected]
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    11312 days ago

    Pretending like Putin didn’t order an insecure alcoholic wife beating racist to be secdef and the plan is going perfectly for him in America is weird

  • Optional
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    4712 days ago

    What a weird fucking opinion piece (the linked Politico story, not the OP)

    Last week, a month after leaving my public affairs role, I respectfully declined the secretary’s generous offer for a new position and informed him of my decision to leave the department, wishing him all the best. I value his friendship and am grateful for his giving me the opportunity to serve. I salute his leadership in helping the president make America strong again.

    Yet 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.

    “I love the guy like a brother, but what a complete fuck-up” sandwiched in with so much trump butt-licking it’s beyond gross.

    • @[email protected]
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      11 days ago

      This is how politics works under an authoritarian: senior officials throwing other officials under the bus by appeal to the authoritarian’s ego.

  • finder
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    3111 days ago

    Donald Trump Jr pushed back on the opinion piece, saying the author is “officially exiled” from Trump’s political movement. “This guy is not America First,” Trump Jr wrote on X. “I’ve been hearing for years that he works his ass off to subvert my father’s agenda. That ends today.”

    The fuck?

    • @[email protected]
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      2611 days ago

      The MAGA movement is a cult. Don Jr, the eldest son of the cult leader, is telling the other cultists this author is excommunicated from the cult. Thus the cultists know to ignore anything relating to this topic and can continue their blind devotion in peace.

  • @[email protected]
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    1611 days ago

    I’m actually a little surprised that the fact he was an atrocious appointment took to as long to be proven!

    It’s also crazy to me that we’re still in the “could cost him his job” era

    • @[email protected]
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      2511 days ago

      Pretty much everyone that doesnt have Trumps balls in his mouth called that one.

      The same goes for the antivax weirdo with a brain worm and pretty much all the MAGA picks.