Hegseth Fires Back at Media and ‘Disgruntled Former Employees’ Amid Signal App Controversy
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pushed back sharply against the media and what he described as “disgruntled former employees” on Monday, as scrutiny intensified over reports of his involvement in a series of sensitive Signal app conversations.
Speaking to reporters at the White House during the annual Easter Egg Roll, Hegseth dismissed reports that he had participated in a second Signal chat in which he allegedly shared classified intelligence about U.S. military operations targeting the Houthis in Yemen. He maintained that he and President Donald Trump remain fully aligned.
“What a big surprise that a few leakers get fired and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out from the same media that peddled the Russia hoax,” Hegseth said, responding to a New York Times report detailing the alleged messages. “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.”
Hegseth said the allegations wouldn’t distract him from his mission to overhaul the Defense Department.
“Not going to work with me, because we’re changing the Defense Department — putting the Pentagon back in the hands of war-fighters. Anonymous smears from disgruntled former employees on old news don’t matter,” he added. “So I’m happy to be here at the Easter Egg Roll with my dad and my kids.”
When asked whether he had spoken to President Trump about the matter, Hegseth confirmed that he had.
“And we are going to continue fighting. On the same page all the way,” he said.
White House Pushes Back on Replacement Rumors
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt forcefully denied an NPR report claiming that the administration was searching for a new secretary of defense.
The controversy stems from reports that The Atlantic’s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, was inadvertently added to a Signal chat involving senior Trump officials coordinating a strike on Houthi forces. A similar incident in April reportedly involved Hegseth discussing details of a March military operation in Yemen with his wife and brother over the same encrypted platform.
NPR initially reported that “the White House has begun the process of looking for a new secretary of defense,” citing an unnamed U.S. official. The outlet later updated its story after Leavitt labeled the report as “fake news.”
“This @NPR story is total FAKE NEWS based on one anonymous source who clearly has no idea what they are talking about,” Leavitt wrote on X. “As the President said this morning, he stands strongly behind @SecDef.”
The White House’s official Rapid Response account echoed her remarks, calling NPR “a Fake News propaganda machine.”
Trump Reaffirms Support for Hegseth
This marks the second time in recent weeks that President Trump has publicly defended Hegseth amid Democratic calls for his resignation over the leaked Signal chats.
Following the initial controversy — in which Goldberg published full messages from the chat — Trump rejected the notion that Hegseth had done anything wrong.
“Hegseth is doing a great job. He had nothing to do with this,” Trump told reporters. “How do you bring Hegseth into this?”
Trump also confirmed that his national security advisor, Mike Waltz, had taken responsibility for mistakenly adding Goldberg to the group chat.
“Mike Waltz … he claimed responsibility, I would imagine. It had nothing to do with anyone else,” Trump said. “It was Mike, I guess. I don’t know, I was told it was Mike.”
The president again sought to downplay the controversy, emphasizing the success of the military mission in question.
“There was no harm done because the attack was unbelievably successful that night,” Trump said.
As the administration continues to face questions about operational security and communication protocols, Hegseth appears intent on deflecting criticism toward his familiar targets — the media and anonymous sources — while reaffirming his loyalty to the president and his agenda for reshaping the Pentagon.
