AlterNet - 'Chaos at the Pentagon': Memo authorizing defense missile 'went unsigned for 3 weeks'

Alex Henderson
April 23, 2025

Between reports of discussing a U.S. military operation in Yemen in two separate chats on the messaging app Signal and clashes with Pentagon officials, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is facing numerous calls for him to resign or be fired. But President Donald Trump, so far, is sticking by Hegseth, and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt is declaring that he remains in good standing with Trump's administration.

According to CNN reporters Kaitlan Collins, Natasha Bertrand, Jake Tapper and Kevin Liptak, Trump is unlikely to fire Hegseth. Yet some Trump Administration officials are worried about "chaos" at the Pentagon.

In an article published by CNN on April 23, the journalists explain, "Trump has…. been soliciting feedback from people around him about Hegseth's performance during conversations, according to two people familiar with the comments. So far, most, if not all, has been positive about the Pentagon chief. Trump is extremely hesitant to fire any Cabinet official at this point in his term, much less Hegseth, given how hard his team fought to get him confirmed in the first place. Yet the state of affairs in his inner circle has troubled some senior officials who want to see changes made to how the secretary's team in the front office of the Pentagon operates."

Collins, Bertrand, Tapper and Liptak add, "The chaos prevailing at the Pentagon has not been lost on the White House, where officials have watched with concern as Hegseth struggles to contain the dysfunction and as his inner circle implodes."

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