A CNN anchor was taken aback on Monday night after an investigation revealed more clips of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth bashing President Donald Trump before he joined the administration.
On Monday, CNN's KFile revealed new video of Hegseth questioning whether Trump could unite the American military back in 2016. The video was released at a time when Hegseth is facing increasing scrutiny for his participation in a Sept. 2 strike against an alleged drug boat where the military killed two survivors of the initial strike while their boat was capsized.
"He talks a tough game, but then when pressed on it, he's an armchair tough guy," Hegseth said in one video. "I hate tosay it, but this is a guy whosaid, who said that John McCainis not a war hero, yet he soughthis own military defermentsbecause he says big, blusterythings that people want to hear.But he goes way too far."
CNN anchor Erin Burnett responded to the unearthed video on her eponymous show on Monday.
"It's just really amazing," Burnett said. "The nuance of what he said there ... that the military is not going to follow illegal orders ... When you put that in context of what's happening now with these boat strikes, it's really stunning."
Last week, CNN's KFile revealed video of Hegseth saying military troops should not follow illegal orders. The video seemed to be in line with a video message six Democratic lawmakers posted online, which Trump and Hegseth swiftly condemned and denounced, although some legal experts have disputed the similarities between the messages.