A Democratic representative who has been present at Pete Hegseth’s classified congressional briefings on the Iran war says the defense secretary can barely get past the script.
James Walkinshaw, 43—who serves on the Military and Foreign Affairs Subcommittee of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform—said he has seen Hegseth, 45, in classified sessions and comes away “embarrassed for him.”
The Virginia Democrat said the defense secretary “can do nothing beyond read the script,” cannot handle detailed questions, and does not understand the strategy, tactical picture, or operational issues.
When asked by Pablo Manriquez of Pablo Reports on the Meidas Network just “how embarrassing” he found Hegseth, particularly in his “alarming” press conferences, Walkinshaw replied, “Not just the press conferences.”
He added: “I see Pete Hegseth in classified briefings and I am embarrassed for him. He can do nothing beyond read the script that’s given him.
“He can’t answer detailed questions. He doesn’t understand the strategy, not that there is one, he doesn’t understand the tactical or operational questions.
“He is in way the hell over his head.”
Hegseth’s public appearances have already been widely criticized as the former Fox News host seems to try to bluff his way through the Trump administration’s seemingly incoherent strategy and messy messaging on the Iran conflict, which is now in its third week.
On March 2, as Trump’s war entered its opening days, Hegseth insisted “we didn’t start this war,” refused to define an endgame, would not rule out boots on the ground, and grew prickly when reporters pressed for basic answers. He appeared to answer mostly from a friendly, pre-selected press pool.
Hegseth also snapped at NBC’s Courtney Kube that hers was a “typical NBC sort of, gotcha type question” when she asked how long the operation might last. He suggested the public did not need to know what the Pentagon would or would not do, at one point railing against “you—the enemy” in comments directed at the press.
His messaging only got more confusing as the war pressed on. On March 10, Hegseth told reporters “our will is endless” before almost immediately insisting the war was “not endless.” His comments only deepened uncertainty over the Trump administration’s intended timeline and fueled concerns the operation was sliding toward the very mission creep Trump had promised to avoid.
By March 13, Hegseth’s performance had spiraled into open media warfare.
After U.S. Central Command announced that at least four crew members from a KC-135 crash in western Iraq had died, Hegseth opened his Pentagon appearance by raging at CNN, moaning about TV banners, and floating more “patriotic” headlines he thought networks should run instead. Photographers were also blocked from briefings following complaints from his team about “unflattering” pictures.
All six crew members aboard the KC-135 have since been confirmed dead.
The administration’s messaging on Iran has also come apart at the seams as fractures have been revealed among top officials. On Tuesday, Joe Kent, the head of the National Counterterrorism Center, resigned in protest, saying Iran had posed no imminent threat.
And on Wednesday, Iran’s foreign minister pushed back against President Trump’s claims that the country wants to negotiate, saying Tehran’s nuclear doctrine is unlikely to change and demanding that any post-war traffic through the Strait of Hormuz will have to meet Iranian and regional conditions.
The Associated Press, citing shipping data, reported that only 89 ships crossed the strait between March 1 and 15, far below the prewar norm of roughly 100 to 135 passages a day, even as some cargo and Iranian exports continued to move.
The Daily Beast has reached out to the Pentagon for comment.
