Pete Hegseth faces deepening scrutiny from Congress over boat strikes

Washington– Pete Hegseth barely made it through a grueling Senate confirmation process to become defense secretary earlier this year, facing lawmakers wary of the Fox News host and skeptical of his ability, temperament and suitability for the job.

Just three months later, he quickly became embroiled in Signalgate as he and other senior US officials used the popular messaging app Signal to discuss pending military strikes in Yemen. A Pentagon inspector general’s report on the matter was delivered to lawmakers on Wednesday.

Now, in what may be the most defining moment of his career to date, Hegseth is facing questions about the use of military force and demands that he release videotapes after a special operations team attacked survivors of a raid on an alleged drug boat off the coast of Venezuela. Some lawmakers and legal experts say a second strike would have violated the laws of armed conflict.

“These are serious accusations, which is why we will have special oversight,” said Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi, Republican chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

The scrutiny surrounding Hegseth’s brash leadership style is bringing to the surface what has long been building discontent in Congress over President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the U.S. military. It represents a potentially existential moment for Hegseth, as congressional committees overseeing the military launch an investigation amid growing calls from Democratic senators for his resignation.

Hegseth pledged the creation of a “warrior culture,” but lawmakers objected

Since becoming Secretary of Defense, Hegseth has vowed to bring a “warrior culture” to the most powerful and expensive department in the U.S. government, from renaming it the War Department to essentially doing away with the rules governing how soldiers behave when their lives are on the line.

Hegseth on Tuesday cited the “fog of war” in his defense of the next strike, saying there were explosions and fires, and that he saw no survivors in the water when the second strike was ordered and launched. He rebuked those who thought his actions were part of the problem.

However, the approach to the operation was in line with Army directives under the command of Hegseth, a former infantry officer in the Army National Guard, part of the post-9/11 forces. The 11th generation deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan and earned Bronze Stars.

In a speech in September, he told an extraordinary crowd of senior military officers whom he had summoned from around the world to Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia that they should not “fight with stupid rules of engagement.”

“We are freeing the hands of our fighters to intimidate, frustrate, pursue and kill the enemies of our country,” he said. “There are no arrogant and politically correct rules of engagement, only common sense and maximum lethality and authority for the combatants.”

But lawmakers, military and legal experts now say the September 2 attack borders on unlawful military action.

“Someone made a terrible decision. Someone has to be held accountable,” said Sen. Thom Tillis, Republican of North Carolina, who in January expressed support for Hegseth until just moments before casting a deciding vote to confirm him.

“The talk show host Secretary may have been suffering from the ‘fog of war,’ but that doesn’t change the fact that this was extrajudicial killing that amounted to murder or a war crime,” said Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Maryland. “He should resign.”

Rep. Don Bacon, a Republican who served 30 years on active duty in the Air Force and ended his career as a brigadier general, said he was not a fan of Hegseth’s leadership. “I don’t think he was up to the task,” Bacon said.

Will Hegseth retain Trump’s support?

Trump, a Republican, has largely stood by his defense secretary, among the most important Cabinet-level positions. But the decisions by Wicker, along with House Armed Services Chairman Mike Rogers of Alabama and top Democrats on the committees, to open investigations provide a rare moment in which Congress asserts itself and its authority to oversee the Trump administration.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, who sponsored the defense secretary’s nomination for confirmation, said the boat strikes fall within Trump’s authority as commander-in-chief — and suggested Hegseth serves the president’s best interest.

“At this point, I do not have an assessment of the secretary,” Thune said at the beginning of the week. “Others can make those assessments.”

But Hegseth also has powerful allies on Capitol Hill, and it remains unclear to what extent Republicans will actually be willing to pressure the president, especially when they spent the first year of his administration caving in to his various demands.

Vice President J.D. Vance, who cast a rare tie-breaking vote to confirm Hegseth, vigorously defended him in the attack. Senator Eric Schmitt, another close Trump ally, dismissed the criticism of Hegseth as “nonsense” and part of an attempt to undermine Trump’s focus on Central and South America.

“He’s not part of the elite in Washington,” said Schmidt, a Republican from Missouri. He added: “It’s not a think tank that people thought Trump would choose. For this and other reasons, they don’t like it.”

Tensions have been rising between some Republican lawmakers and the Pentagon for months. Capitol Hill has been angered by recent moves to restrict how defense officials communicate with lawmakers and the slow pace of information about Trump’s campaign to destroy drug boats off the coast of Venezuela.

As he defended his position, Hegseth spoke to both Wicker and Rogers, the top lawmakers overseeing the military. Rogers said he was “satisfied” with Hegseth after that conversation, while Wicker said he told Hegseth he would like to testify before Congress.

Hegseth initially tried to dismiss the initial report about the raid by posting a photo of cartoon character Franklin the Turtle shooting at a boat from a helicopter, but that only fueled criticism of him and angered lawmakers who felt he was not taking the allegations seriously.

Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York called Hegseth a “national embarrassment,” adding that the Defense Secretary’s social media post of the cartoon turtle is “something no serious leader would consider doing.”

Schumer reiterated his insistence Wednesday that Hegseth “release the full, unedited tapes” of what happened.

What information will Congress get?
Later this week, the Armed Services Committee chairs, along with the committees’ top Democrats, will hear private testimony from Navy Vice Adm. Frank “Mitch” Bradley, who the White House said ordered a second strike on the survivors.

Republicans have been careful to withhold judgment on the hit until they complete their investigation, but Democrats say these problems with Hegseth have been a long time coming.

Sen. Tim Kaine, a Democrat from Virginia, pointed to Hegseth’s tumultuous confirmation hearing, in which issues were raised regarding his management of nonprofits, as well as allegations of sexual assault, assault, and drinking on the job. Hegseth vowed not to drink alcohol if confirmed.

“Do not suddenly change your level of judgment or change your personality when you are confirmed as Secretary of Defense,” Kaine said. “Instead, things that were once part of your personality become more serious and existential.”