Hegseth clashes with Democrats in third day of hearings

The Hill

a day ago

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Thursday closed out his third and final day of hearings on Capitol Hill with several clashes with lawmakers as he dodged questions on invading Greenland, Ukraine aid, his use of the app Signal, and troop deployment in Los Angeles.
Hegseth, in his first appearance before the House Armed Services Committee, was quickly hit with queries from panel Democrats, starting with ranking member Adam Smith (Wash.). Smith pressed the Pentagon chief on whether it is the Defense Department's policy that the U.S. military be prepared to take Greenland or Panama by force.
Hegseth would not rule out the possibility of a future military invasion of the Arctic territory and Central American country, suggesting to lawmakers the Pentagon could have such plans and that the U.S. has an interest in protecting both areas from Chinese influence.
The Defense Department 'plans for any particular contingency' he said, adding that 'I think the American people would want the Pentagon to have plans for anything.'
The answer caused Smith to scoff, replying: 'I don't think the American people voted for President Trump because they were hoping we would invade Greenland. I'm going to go out on a limb on that one.'
Smith also warned that the Trump administration is sending a message to the rest of the world 'that the U.S. is purely in it for itself and does not care about alliances' in seeking to take over its ally countries.
President Trump for months has floated the possibility of using military force to take over Greenland and Panama by refusing to rule out such an action.
The thought has alarmed allies, including Denmark, which owns Greenland and has opposed any U.S. efforts to take over the territory.
Hegseth was later pressed by Rep. Mike Turner (R-Ohio), who implored him to confirm that 'it is not your testimony today that there are plans at the Pentagon for taking by force or invading Greenland, correct? Because I sure as hell hope that it is not that.'
Hegseth would only repeat that the 'Pentagon has plans for any number of contingencies' and that officials 'look forward to working with Greenland to ensure that it is secured from any potential threats.'
Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) took his five minutes to supply Hegseth with the most direct questioning he's yet faced on whether he shared classified information on U.S. attack plans in Yemen via the Signal messaging app.
Moulton asked Hegseth whether when U.S. Central Command relayed the launch time for fighter jets set to strike Houthi militant targets in March — information the Pentagon chief would go on to share with at least two Signal group chats — the information was relayed on a classified or unclassified system.
Hegseth declined to answer, asserting that 'any way that the secretary of Defense communicates or provides information in and of itself is classified and not to be discussed.'
He also wouldn't say what the classification markings were on the information Central Command relayed, prompting Moulton to grow exasperated.
'It's not classified to disclose whether or not it was classified,' he said, eventually getting Hegseth to admit that he was not saying that the information was unclassified.
'So you took classified information from Central Command that had a classification marking on it — because that's what's required by DOD regulations — and you put it on an unclassified system,' Moulton stated, asking whether Hegseth plans to take any accountability for that.
But Hegseth continued to dodge: 'I serve at the pleasure of the president, like everybody else does.'
Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.) then lambasted the Defense secretary as an 'embarrassment,' demanding he resign over a range of issues including the Signal group chat, deploying Marines to Los Angeles amid protests and his views on Russia's war in Ukraine.
'I have called for your resignation. I didn't think you were qualified before your confirmation, and you have done nothing to inspire confidence in your ability to lead competently,' Carbajal said.
Later, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) pressed the secretary on U.S. military posture with Israel reportedly threatening an imminent attack on Iran. Khanna repeatedly asked Hegseth whether he could commit to not directly attacking Iran unless the Islamic Republic first fired on the United States. Hegseth would make no such assurance.
​​'It wouldn't be prudent for me to commit or not to commit. My job is to be postured and prepared,' Hegseth said.
He also said Trump is 'giving Iran every opportunity, with talks ongoing, but he also fully recognizes the threat that Iran, with a nuclear blowup, would exist.'
Khanna also asked Hegseth whether he would commit to following federal court or Supreme Court rulings regarding the Pentagon's extraordinary deployment of National Guard members and Marines into Los Angeles.
But the Pentagon chief repeatedly dodged the question, saying only that 'my job right now is to ensure the troops that we have in Los Angeles are capable of supporting law enforcement.'
After another effort, Hegseth said the U.S. should not have 'local judges determining foreign policy or national security policy for the country.'
Khanna pointed to signals from others in the Trump administration, specifically Vice President Vance, that they could ignore court orders they disagree with.
The hearing caps off Hegseth's long week on Capitol Hill, which began on Tuesday with a relatively quiet House Appropriations defense subcommittee hearing.
But on Wednesday, Hegseth faced heated questions from the Senate's version of the Appropriations panel, which bombarded Hegseth over the Russia-Ukraine war, the Pentagon's delays in delivering budget information and the administration's focus on Greenland in its Arctic strategy.