A few leakers get fired, and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out against the Houthis. How much dysfunction? There is none. He's doing a great job. Everybody's happy with him. We have the highest recruitment recruitment numbers I think we've had in 28 years. No. He's doing a great job. [00:00:17] It's just fake news. They just bring up stories. I guess it sounds like disgruntled employees. You know, he was put there to get rid of a lot of bad people. But is Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth getting rid of a lot of bad people, or is he just getting rid of Defense Department officials who don't agree [00:00:35] with attacking Iran on behalf of Israel? That's the real question here. And we're going to get to those details in just a minute. Regardless, President Trump has decided to publicly defend Secretary of State Pete Hegseth, even as absolute chaos is playing out within the Pentagon. [00:00:51] But NPR is reporting that there are some rumors within the white House that they're looking for a replacement for Pete Hegseth. And we're going to get to the details on that in just a minute. But what do you think about those rumors? So the rumors are almost certainly right, because now a lot of right wingers [00:01:08] are confirming them. And we'll get to that in a little bit. But to me, the most interesting thing is what you just said, Caspar. Why? Because there are two possibilities. One, Hegseth is just a disaster, you know, and we've got all sorts of issues, personal issues with Hegseth that's leading to the disaster. [00:01:25] Or there's this giant fight with in the pro-Israel and anti-Israel camps. There is no anti-Israel camp. But hey, let's not do everything Israel asks camp, right? Within the administration and within the Defense Department. Is that what the real issue is? [00:01:40] I don't know. Let's try to find out. So I did some deep research into this story because I was really curious about that very question. And I've got some receipts. So let's get to it. Now, part of what has really blown up in regard to criticism toward Defense [00:01:56] Secretary Pete Hegseth is the fact that a Trump loyalist and a former Pentagon official spokesperson for the Pentagon, who advocated for Pete Hegseth to be confirmed as defense secretary, has now essentially put out this long [00:02:12] piece in Politico to talk about the chaos that has been unfolding within the Defense Department. So this is John Ullyot, who is the former chief Pentagon spokesperson. He was, in fact, offered a new role within the Pentagon. [00:02:28] He claimed that it was a generous offer. Bye bye. Hegseth himself. But he decided that he would not take that role. Nonetheless, he writes that President Donald Trump has a strong record of holding his top officials to account. Given that it's hard to see Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth [00:02:44] remaining in his role for much longer. So the fact that he wrote this opinion piece, again, is very relevant, considering the fact that he is not some Trump administration hater. He's very much supportive of the Trump administration. He was supportive of Hegseth, but noticed that there was, a lack of real [00:03:01] leadership in the Pentagon as a result of Hegseth serving as secretary of defense. - Go ahead, Jake. - Yeah. One quick thing about this guy. So, you know, he's legit, only in this regard. Not for anything else, is that he's the guy who's trying to root out from the Pentagon. [00:03:18] He's the guy that was wanted to take, reference to Jackie Robinson off of, Defense Department materials, etc.. So my point there isn't that he's a good guy. My point is that he's a die hard conservative. So this is not some sort of Lib attack on Hegseth at all. [00:03:34] In fact, you can go to Town Hall, where he published an opinion piece advocating for the confirmation of Pete Hegseth to serve as defense secretary. The title is Pete Hegseth is the best choice to reform the Pentagon. Okay. [00:03:49] So I'm sure he's regretting that now to some extent. But let's get to some of the other details that we know of at this moment. So he writes in this Politico op ed that yet even strong backers of the secretary, like me, must admit, [00:04:05] the last month has been a full blown meltdown at the Pentagon, and it's becoming a real problem for the administration. Now he calls out the Defense Department's firings that took place just last Friday, and among them were Pete Hegseth, most loyal senior staffers, [00:04:20] including senior adviser Dan Caldwell. And then you also had deputy chief of staff Darren Zelnick and finally Colin Carroll, who's the or was the chief of staff to the Deputy secretary of Defense. Now, in regard to those firings, Julia writes that in the aftermath, [00:04:38] Defense Department officials working for Hegseth tried to smear the aides anonymously to reporters, claiming they were fired for leaking sensitive information as part of an investigation ordered earlier this month. Yet none of this is true, he writes. So what does he mean by that? [00:04:55] Well, apparently the Defense Department had said that it would conduct polygraph tests to determine who within the department was lying about leaking information to reporters. Now, at least one of the individuals who got fired has said that. [00:05:13] Look, none of us have had any polygraph tests. And the other thing that they've said is that, one of them was told by former colleagues at the Defense Department that, they were cleared of any wrongdoing and they don't have to worry about getting fired. [00:05:29] And then they ended up getting fired. So the cover story is that they got fired for leaking. Well, that's not really the case. So why did they get fired? So then on Friday, Politico reported that Hegseth chief of staff Joe Casper was also stepping down from his role, which is odd considering Casper is the one who called for the investigations [00:05:47] into the department to determine who within the department is leaking information to reporters, and he was also the one who was advocating for, a pause on intelligence gathering on behalf of Ukraine. So Joe Casper apparently didn't like those guys, said one defense official. [00:06:07] They all have different styles. They just didn't get along. It was a personality clash. So right now, as we speak, Pete Hegseth, the head of the Defense Department, is presiding over a department where his two closest advisors for over a decade are no longer there. [00:06:22] And he's without chiefs of staff for himself and for his deputy. So why do they get fired? And it turns out there's infighting over the topic of going to war with Iran on behalf of Israel. You have the so-called interventionists, the neoconservatives, who very much want [00:06:41] to carry out what's in the best interests of Israel as opposed to the United States. And then you have the America First crowd who appears to be pushed out of of the Defense Department. I'll give you some specific examples as to why. Go ahead. Yeah. So here's what we know and what we don't know. [00:06:56] So we know for sure that there's a giant blowup at the Pentagon. Right. So those it's super weird for him to fire die hard conservatives and and his allies for the last decade, right? So that doesn't make any sense at all. So there's a mystery there for sure. [00:07:14] Okay, then number two is we know that the official cover story is not anywhere near true. And the guys that were fired and then had the leaks against them. And so they're like, not only would all the things, all the things that Anna said, they're like, we were looking forward to the lie detector test. And then they never gave us one and then pretended that it was about it. [00:07:31] So the official story is definitely garbage, right? So that leads us to figuring, trying to figure out, so why are they actually doing this? That's the big mystery. So now and by the way, as you heard me talk about it on the show earlier when Laura Loomer went in And, you know, said we're going to oust. [00:07:49] I found a list of the neocons and we're going to oust them. I thought, that is super strange. She's massively pro-Israel. She is. And she's against the neocons. - That story doesn't make any sense. - No it doesn't. And now. Now, I totally believe that that that was a total lie, that she had done [00:08:06] an investigation and she wanted to root out anyone, you know, within, you know, the executive branch that wasn't serving the America First agenda because the America First agenda runs up against it, is counter to U.S. Foreign policy in Israel. [00:08:22] And Laura Loomer loves U.S. Foreign policy in regard to Israel. So I just find it hard to believe that she worked to oust individuals who are neocons when her foreign policy preferences happened to align with neocons. Yeah. So there's something fishy about that story. [00:08:39] So what did you find, Anna? Okay, so let's talk about this a little bit. So it's worth mentioning that the America First crowd that prioritizes the United States over Israel, consists of the very people who are getting fired under these dubious claims of leaking. Right. So Caldwell, for instance, supports a more realist and restraint oriented national [00:08:59] security policy, particularly in regard to Iran and also in regard to Ukraine. But for our purposes here, we're going to focus on U.S. Foreign policy that suits the best interests of Israel as opposed to the United States. [00:09:14] And it's also been reported that there is an open clash among Trump's inner circle over whether or not the United States should go to war with Iran or attack Iran on behalf of Israel. Also, this was reported by Responsible Statecraft. That's the publication that's aligned with the Quincy Institute. [00:09:33] Daniel Davis said he lost an opportunity to work for Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard after Jewish Insider magazine and other neoconservative voices called him out for his opposition to the war in Gaza and warnings about military conflict with Iran. [00:09:50] And there's some more reporting about this. For instance, we know and we've been knowing about how the Israel lobby has been trying to oust Steve Witkoff from Trump's administration. Steve Witkoff, of course, was the individual who pressured Israel to sign a temporary cease fire deal with Hamas. [00:10:06] That kind of fell apart in the end, but there was a temporary halt in the fighting. But Israel didn't like that. They didn't like that pressure. And ever since then, they've been trying to oust Steve Witkoff from the Trump administration also. Here's a post from Saagar Enjeti, which I think is relevant here. [00:10:22] New for me and Ryan Grim. Mike Waltz put a former Israeli Ministry of Defense employee on the Israel and Iran portfolio in the National Security Council. NSC confirmed her employment and describes her as a patriotic American. [00:10:39] No, she's literally an Israeli. I mean, she might be an Israeli American, but she was on the Ministry of Defense of another country. I don't care which country. Like the Saudis, the Norwegians. No, no. You served already in a Defense Department? [00:10:54] Yeah. And it wasn't ours. I mean, that's insane. That's insane on so many levels. So a quick clarification, because it is relevant to Pete Hegseth s role in all of this. Right. The NSC is not within the Pentagon. NSC is a completely different federal government agency, although it is [00:11:12] the federal government agency that is tasked with advising President Trump on foreign policy and national security. Yeah. So thank you for the clarification on Defense Minister. So she was in the defense ministry of Israel right now in the National Security Council. [00:11:27] I don't care. Look, guys, I don't care if they're British. I don't care if they're Canadian. I don't care what other country they're involved in. You can't be on the Defense Ministry of another country and then come and serve in a super important national security role in our country. [00:11:44] So calling into the dual loyalties, questioning the dual loyalties of Jewish Americans or Turkish Americans or any other Americans is unacceptable. But this is not just a normal citizen. This is someone who worked for their Defense Department. [00:12:01] Do you think she's going to be unbiased when it comes to Israel? I mean, come on, don't be ridiculous. That's insane. It's insane. We never allowed for any other country. So, look, I don't know if Pete Hegseth was behind ousting his top advisers, right? [00:12:17] People who he has close, close relations with or relationships with for over a decade. I don't know what's really going on or who's making the decisions to purge individuals within the Defense Department in particular. But to me, it's becoming more and more clear that the pro-Israel side is winning [00:12:36] this war and basically succeeding in pushing out the individuals who are like, yeah, maybe we don't go to war with Iran on behalf of a foreign country. That's not going to be in the best interests of the American people or our military. And by the way, speaking of Mike Wallace, remember, Mike Wallace was the guy [00:12:54] who included Atlantic journalist Jeffrey Goldberg in that signal chat that got Hegseth into a lot of hot water. Interesting how he hasn't been fired. Right. But he is also the guy who has put that former Israeli Ministry of Defense employee, you know, in the NSC. [00:13:10] Yeah. So, look, we there's things we know and don't know, right? So Mike Wallace is a neocon, totally in favor of Israel. There's no question about that. And in the beginning of the administration, we told you that Miriam Adelson, one of his top donors, basically asked for a number of neocons to go in the administration, including [00:13:28] Marco Rubio, Secretary of State Mike Wallace, and National Security Council. Huckabee and then Slotnick. Slotnick. They ran into, some problems because they didn't want to lose that House seat. Right. So and then Pete Hegseth, we had, as historically has been very pro-Israel, [00:13:45] more militaristic, etc., but was not as clear as the others. Right. So now, to give you a sense, again, this is not about dual loyalties or anything like that. Steve Witkoff is also Jewish American. And so but Israel is apparently trying to oust him because he's not sufficiently loyal enough to Israel, which, bless his heart. [00:14:01] I mean, that's you're supposed to be representing us, and he is. So don't ever take it out on our Jewish American brothers and sisters, right? Yeah, I wouldn't even say. That he's not sufficiently loyal to Israel. He just wanted to broker a cease fire deal. - And Israel didn't like that? - Yeah. [00:14:17] And by the way, I can. You're absolutely right. I can make an argument for that. That is much better for Israel. 100%. But he's not sufficiently loyal to the lunatics currently running the Israeli government. Exactly right. And so I'm going to add one more piece of data to this, which is that the other day, [00:14:34] Mark Levin got appointed to a government post and. - I was like. - Mark Levin. Mark Levin is the, like most Israel first guy in all of American media. He makes Ben Shapiro look like he's, you know, part of the Gaza resistance. [00:14:50] And so and he was furious that we didn't attack Iran furious whenever we don't do anything that Israel commands. And he got appointed to a Homeland Security Advisory Council. So there's movement here guys. So there the and and remember just last week reporters really piece of good news [00:15:10] which a huge piece of good news which is that Trump refused Netanyahu's request to bomb Iran for now. Right. For now. And so and now that things are not going in the direction that, Netanyahu wants, all of a sudden chairs are getting moved around in the Trump administration [00:15:28] and people that are more likely to say, oh, yeah, we should definitely attack Iran are being brought into the room and the people were saying, hey, maybe we should serve America first. - Are being moved out of the room. - So I want. To just go back to this piece that was written by Elliott because he, you know, [00:15:43] also mentions all of the other foibles that have gone on in the Defense Department under Hegseth leadership. Obviously, their signal gate where they're communicating. Okay. Administration officials are communicating about an impending strike [00:15:59] on the Houthis in Yemen. But now, it turns out, according to a new New York Times piece, Hegseth also shared sensitive details about military operations in Yemen. In another signal chat that included family members, namely his [00:16:17] wife and, I believe, his brother as well. So and his lawyer, which like, what are you doing? What are you doing? So that news also led to this fury within the Trump administration about the leaks that have been going on, because that report doesn't happen unless [00:16:34] someone leaked it to the New York Times. But nonetheless, the leaks, I think, are less of an issue. What's a bigger issue here is that you have all this influence from a foreign government, you know, leading to personnel decisions [00:16:50] within our very own Defense Department. - And that's unacceptable. - Yeah. And by the way, I mean, the reporting on this has been really miserable because they're talking about, oh, there is a massive upheaval in the Defense Department. - Yeah. - But why why? [00:17:06] But like literally no article talks about why. Which by the way, is honestly another sign that it's Israel. Because the one thing you're not allowed to talk about in mainstream media is Israel. So. Or money in politics. Those are two issues you're never allowed to discuss, right? So like you're telling me there's a massive upheaval in the Defense Department [00:17:25] and not a single mainstream media reporter that covers the Pentagon and the white House has any idea why? - Nah, that doesn't make any sense at all. - And it gets worse. Hegseth brought his wife, a former Fox News producer, to two separate meetings [00:17:41] with foreign military counterparts where sensitive information was discussed. So this is separate from the signal chat. And also the Pentagon, as we know, set up a top secret briefing by the Joint Chiefs of Staff on China specifically for Elon Musk, who has business in China. [00:17:59] The white House, though, did call that off after they caught wind of it. So how is Pete Hegseth handling all of this news? Well, he's handling it the way you would expect him to. Let's watch. 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. [00:18:19] Won't get back their Pulitzers. They got Pulitzers for a bunch of lies. Pulitzers for a bunch of lies. And on hoaxes. Time and time and time again. And as they peddle those lies, no one ever calls them on it. See, this is what the media does. [00:18:35] 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 because we're changing the Defense Department, putting the Pentagon back in the hands of warfighters and anonymous smears from [00:18:51] disgruntled former employees on old news. Doesn't matter. So before I go to Jake for comment on the clip that we just watched, now that I've seen this on a bigger screen, it does appear that Pete Hegseth sideburns are even. It's just that one of them is more gray than the other, so it looks shorter than the other. [00:19:07] The important point to mention it's a big debate on Twitter right now. Go ahead Jake. That's funny because I didn't know it was a big debate on Twitter. And I thought, he's got a police those sideburns. They're very long sideburns. Apparently going back to the 1970s. Maybe that's the cause of all this. Okay. And it did look like he had a little bit of Easter egg on his face there. [00:19:26] So I'm here all week, whether you like it or not. Okay. Anyways, super defensive, but on the other hand, he's beleaguered, so I give him a pass on being defensive. So, look, we continue not to know why I'm not. We're not saying here we know for sure that it's Israel [00:19:42] that are moving these chairs and stuff. We. But we know that it's not the official reason. And and there's that speculation, by the way, there's other speculation. There could be other reasons. Right. So some of our members are speculating whether it's whiskey leaks, you know, and I don't know that that's fair. [00:19:58] And maybe that that's the reason the mainstream media isn't giving a reason because they heard that, but they don't have enough sources to confirm it. - Can I you know what I'm saying? - Yeah. - Can I just. - Okay. I don't think we should be poking fun at his substance abuse issues. [00:20:13] Okay. I get I get that, oh, he's a baddie because he's on the other side of the political aisle. Let's be kind to people who struggle with substance abuse issues. Okay. No, I agree with that in general, of course. Right. And we're good libs, and we're not going to hold anything against good folks who are struggling with issues. [00:20:29] But you can't be the defense secretary while you're struggling with that. Well, I don't know if he he is at the moment and we don't know, and we don't have any evidence that he is. And it seems like we're just poking fun at him for having substance abuse issues. No, no, since there is no good explanation of what's happening and you know us, we can suss out what's really happening. [00:20:47] Pretty good, right? Like, we've had a long history of this. And then it turns out that was the actual reason. Because they hide the real reason that makes that. That's why we have to dive in and try to figure out what the real reason is. Right? Yeah. The real reason is, is real. Yeah. I would bet my money on that. [00:21:03] So that's your theory. And it's a very good theory, right? I'm just stating another theory, not because I have any information in that regard, but just because it's such a giant mystery as to why all of these things are happening at the same time. So I get why the members are speculating about that. Every time you ring the bell below, an angel gets its wings. [00:21:20] Totally not true, but it does keep you updated on our live shows.