U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who has been mired in controversy since Donald Trump first nominated him, is now "unlikely to remain in his role," according to his own former department spokesperson on Sunday.
The report includes "remarkable accusations" from a former Hegseth aide and comes the same day as it was reported that the Secretary was involved in a second unsecured Signal chat in which sensitive attack plans were shared. Hegseth was mocked for the reported security misstep.
In a piece entitled, "Former Pentagon official warns department’s dysfunction could topple Hegseth," Politico quotes John Ullyot, the former top Defense Department spokesperson, as saying, "The last month has been a full-blown meltdown at the Pentagon."
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"The Pentagon is in 'total chaos' and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is unlikely to remain in his role, according to its former top spokesperson, who painted a scene of dysfunction, backstabbing and continuous missteps at the highest levels of the department," according to the report.
It further quotes Ullyot as saying, "The building is in disarray under Hegseth’s leadership ... The dysfunction is now a major distraction for the president — who deserves better from his senior leadership."
The report goes on to say, "Ullyot, who resigned from the Pentagon last week, described a department in collapse."
"He accused Hegseth’s team of 'falsehoods' about why three top officials were fired last week, saying they hadn’t leaked sensitive information to the media. He chastised Pentagon officials for how they handled revelations that Hegseth shared sensitive military information in a Signal chat, and he pointed to other leaks that caused embarrassment to the administration," the weekend report states. "The remarkable accusations by a former official — who left only two days ago and insists he still supports the Trump administration’s national security policies — underscores the infighting and upheaval that has turned increasingly public in recent weeks."