National security adviser Mike Waltz came to the defense of President Donald Trump’s embroiled Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth as the Pentagon has faced weeks of turmoil.
From the alleged misuse of the unsecured messaging app Signal to the departure of several top staffers within the secretary’s office, the Department of Defense’s latest controversies have caused many to wonder how long Hegseth will remain in the president’s Cabinet.
However, no matter the allegation, Trump and his administration have stood by Hegseth.
Waltz echoed that support once again Sunday morning while speaking with Fox News anchor Maria Bartiromo.
During a segment on Sunday Morning Futures, Bartiromo pressed Waltz on whether the United States would be able to broker a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine while the Defense Department appears to be “chaotic” and “weakened.”
Waltz did not explicitly answer the question, instead pointing to agency changes made at the Pentagon within the first three months of the administration.
“Just 100 days ago, we were more worried about DEI and climate change nonsense,” the national security adviser said. “Now we’re focused on lethality and winning. That’s been, in just over three months, the change.”
When pressed on how Hegseth planned to quickly replace his recently departed staffers, Waltz again looked to paint a positive picture of the Department of Defense and pointed to their entire staff.
“Maria, there’s 20,000 people in the Pentagon. There is a record number amount of generals,” Waltz said.
“And the other piece, there is accountability. We have had several general officers that weren’t getting the job done, and admirals get fired and get replaced — including our great new [Joint Chiefs] chairman, [Dan] ‘Razin’ Caine, who I just talked to last night,” he continued.
“That’s what that Pentagon needs. No one ever gets fired. There’s never a sense of accountability. And now there is. And whether it’s leaks, or not getting the job done, or failures in terms of procurement acquisition, now you have a leader that’s in charge. And I couldn’t be prouder of Pete Hegseth.”
Earlier this month, two former Hegseth staffers, Darin Selnick and Dan Caldwell, were fired after being implicated in an investigation into media leaks.
Joe Kasper, Hegseth’s chief of staff, also left his position in the days following.
The Defense Department has since announced several senior advisers replacing the departed employees, including assistant to the defense secretary for public affairs Sean Parnell, as well as Justin Fulcher, Patrick Weaver, and Ricky Buria.
It was not immediately clear who will be replacing Kasper.
The Defense Department isn’t the only agency facing criticism and chaos in recent weeks, as the State Department has come under fire over a “comprehensive” reorganization set to eliminate 132 offices and 700 positions.
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio defended the planned changes this weekend, telling NBC’s Kristen Welker that they are intended to make sure every office “has a purpose and they’re fulfilling them.”
As of Sunday, Rubio said nothing had been cut yet.
