Hegseth Faces Sharp Questions from Congress on Spending and Pentagon Chaos

BY  LOLITA C. BALDOR AND TARA COPP

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was quickly met with sharp questions and criticism Tuesday by lawmakers who pressed him about his early moves to fire key military leaders and purge diversity programs and who expressed bipartisan frustration that Congress has not yet gotten a full defense budget from the Trump administration.

“Your tenure as secretary has been marked by endless chaos,” Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., told Hegseth. Others, including Republican leaders, warned that massive spending projects such as President Donald Trump’s desire for a $175 billion Golden Dome missile will get broad congressional scrutiny.

The House Defense Appropriations subcommittee hearing was the first time lawmakers have been able to challenge Trump’s defense chief since he was confirmed. And it is the first of three congressional hearings he will face this week.

Lawmakers take aim at Pentagon’s planned spending

Lawmakers complained widely that Congress hasn’t yet gotten details of the administration’s first proposed defense budget, which Trump has said would total $1 trillion, a significant increase over the current spending level of more than $800 billion. And they said they are are unhappy with the administration’s efforts to go around Congress to push through changes.

Spending was a key topic as panel members quizzed Hegseth. They questioned plans to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on security upgrades to turn a Qatari jet into Air Force One and to pour as much as $45 million into a parade recently added to the Army’s 250th birthday bash, which coincides with Trump’s birthday Saturday.

Rep. Betty McCollum, D-Minn., quizzed Hegseth on deploying about 700 active-duty Marines to assist more than 4,100 National Guard troops in protecting federal buildings and personnel during immigration raid protests in Los Angeles.

She got into a testy back-and-forth with Hegseth over the costs of the operation. He evaded the questions except to say the department has a budget increase and the money to cover the costs.

Under the Posse Comitatus Act, troops are prohibited from policing U.S. citizens on American soil. Invoking the Insurrection Act, which allows troops to do that, is incredibly rare, and it’s not clear if Trump plans to do it.

The commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. Eric Smith, will be on Capitol Hill testifying at a separate budget hearing Tuesday and is likely to face similar questions.

What Hegseth has focused on so far

Hegseth has spent vast amounts of time during his first five months in office promoting the social changes he’s making at the Pentagon. He’s been far less visible in the administration’s more critical international security crises and negotiations involving Russia, Ukraine, Israel, Gaza and Iran.

Most recently, Hegseth directed the renaming of a Navy ship that had honored Harvey Milk, a slain gay rights activist who served as a sailor during the Korean War. Hegseth’s spokesman, Sean Parnell, said the renaming was needed to ensure “the names attached to all DOD installations and assets are reflective of the commander-in-chief’s priorities, our nation’s history, and the warrior ethos.”

Hegseth has posted numerous videos of his morning workouts with troops or of himself signing directives to purge diversity and equity programs and online content from the military. He has boasted of removing transgender service members from the force and firing so-called woke generals, many of whom were women.

He was on the international stage about a week ago, addressing an annual national security conference in Asia about threats from China. But a trip to NATO headquarters last week was quick and quiet, and he deliberately skipped a gathering of about 50 allies and partners where they discussed support for Ukraine.

His use of the Signal messaging app

Hegseth’s hearing Tuesday was his first public appearance on Capitol Hill since he squeaked through his Senate confirmation with a tie-breaking vote. It was the closest vote of any Cabinet member.

While he has talked a lot about making the military more lethal, it was his use of the unclassified, unsecured Signal messaging app that quickly caught public attention.

Set up by then-national security adviser Mike Waltz, a group chat included Hegseth and other senior administration leaders and was used to share information about coming military strikes in Yemen.

The chat became a public embarrassment because the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, Jeffrey Goldberg, was inadvertently added to it. Waltz took responsibility for the gaffe, but Hegseth was roundly criticized for sharing details about the military strikes in this chat and in another one that included his wife and brother.

Multiple investigations are looking into his use of Signal. The Defense Department’s acting inspector general has been looking into the initial chat at the request of the Republican and Democratic leaders of the Senate Armed Services Committee. The Pentagon’s watchdog also is reviewing whether any of Hegseth’s aides were asked to delete any Signal messages.

Already defense leaders have been grilled in other hearings on the plans to retrofit the Qatari jet and the costs of the military parade. Trump has long wanted a parade, and Army leaders defended it as a good way to attract new recruits.