Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly forced a top Pentagon aide to support Hegseth's wife having a key role in closed-door meetings — an unusual move, and one the aide eventually admitted he didn't back.
Following Hegseth's request to remove Courtney Kube, an NBC News reporter who covers the Pentagon, his wife, Jennifer, apparently also wanted her gone, The New York Times reports. Hegseth has apparently wanted to remove several reporters, including his former colleague Jennifer Griffin, whom he "had developed a professional disdain for," according to people with knowledge of the matter.
Jennifer Hegseth was allegedly assisting her husband's team with communications strategy. She has denied that she wanted Kube's credentials removed from the Pentagon Press Association, a group that advocates for the press to have access to military information and events.
“It’s hard to find previous reports of a defense secretary letting his wife sit in on official closed-door meetings or task his senior staff in their official duties,” John Ullyot, former chief Pentagon spokesman when Hegseth gave the instructions, told The Times. "It shows poor judgment and may pose a risk to national security. As I’ve said before, President Trump deserves better.”
Ullyot served as a chief spokesman for the National Security Council and deputy assistant to President Donald Trump during his first term. He left the Pentagon job in the weeks after Hegseth was appointed.
"But while there, Mr. Ullyot defended Ms. Hegseth’s role, saying that 'she is welcome any time in the Pentagon.' He now says Mr. Hegseth directed him to issue that statement despite his view that the arrangement was 'strange and inappropriate,'” The Times reports.
Hegseth was reportedly upset that reporters could have access to the Pentagon and walk around "unescorted past his office."
"In the end, Mr. Hegseth’s colleagues announced a rotation plan to remove outlets from their dedicated spaces and invite others to take their spots," The Times reports. "The reshuffling proceeded in two waves, with NBC News among the first to lose its workspace."