A personality clash between two of defense secretary Pete Hegseth's top aides has attracted notice from the White House.
The conflict has persisted for months, even after Hegseth purged some political appointees in April, and the tension has resulted in dysfunction and paranoia at the highest levels of the Department of Defense — and forced comment from President Donald Trump, reported the Washington Post.
“There’s a cold war that exists in between flash points,” said a source, who recalled numerous instances when tempers have flared on Hegseth’s team. “It’s unsettling at times.”
The relationship between top aides Eric Geressy and Ricky Buria is especially fraught, according to several sources familiar with the matter.
"Geressy, a retired soldier whom Hegseth has credited with mentoring him when they served together in Iraq, has voiced repeated concerns that Buria — until recently a military assistant to the defense secretary — has sought to marginalize colleagues to boost his own standing within the Trump administration," the Post reported, based on comments by current and former officials.
"The tension boiled over in March, when Geressy learned he had been excluded from joining some of Hegseth’s meetings during a multi-day trip across the Pacific," the report added. "He blamed Buria for the perceived slight and told colleagues that he had upbraided the Marine Corps colonel during the trip, according to people familiar with their standoff."
That clash took place shortly after The Atlantic's editor in chief Jeffrey Goldberg revealed he had been mistakenly added to a group chat where Hegseth and other top administration officials discussed a bombing operation in Yemen, and Geressy told colleagues he was troubled they were using the using the free messaging app Signal for high-level discussions.
"Geressy has also voiced disgust about complaints emerging from the White House," the Post reported. "He told fellow Pentagon staff that military aides working closely with Trump’s inner sanctum have come to view Buria as self-important and quick to bigfoot others to get more time with Hegseth and other senior administration officials."
Buria, a former Marine Corps pilot who served as "body man" to former defense secretary Lloyd Austin, quickly gained new power and responsibility under Hegseth, —whose influential wife, Jennifer, has been a staunch backer. Sources say he is functioning as acting Pentagon chief of staff, and is increasingly frustrated the White House doesn't seem to want him in that role permanently.
“While the media is focused on gossip, President Trump is confident in the Secretary’s ability to ensure top leadership at the Department of Defense shares their focus on restoring a military that is focused on readiness, lethality, and excellence,” said White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly when asked about Buria.
Geressy has become so frustrated by the chaos that he has openly discussed resigning, but he has stayed in his role out of loyalty to Hegseth, and Trump was asked about a recent article by the New York Post reporting that Buria had bad-mouthed the president and Vice President JD Vance.
"Trump said that he has 'no idea' who Buria is, but 'I would recommend that we don’t take him' if the reporting is true," the Guardian reported.
“I’ll take a look. Buria? I’ll check it out.”