<p>Even The New York Times isn&#8217;t buying The Washington Post&#8217;s hit piece attacking War Secretary Pete Hegseth and claiming that he gave an order to &#8220;kill them all,&#8221; authorizing a second missile strike on a Venezuelan drug boat when survivors were in the water.</p>
<p>The Post&#8217;s &#8220;exclusive&#8221; — which ran on Saturday — painted a picture of two survivors, helplessly clinging to the remnants of their destroyed vessel as a second strike was ordered to ensure they were killed. Citing anonymous sources, the outlet walked right up to the line, but stopped just short of directly accusing Hegseth of executing the two survivors in the water.</p>
<p>What followed immediately was absolutely predictable: anchors and guests across the legacy media Sunday shows <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/spin-cycle-wapo-hit-piece-targets-pete-hegseth-and-legacy-outlets-fall-in-line">stepped across the line</a> even WaPo wouldn&#8217;t, accusing Hegseth of committing <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/whoopi-goldberg-says-pete-hegseth-set-soldiers-up-to-face-war-crimes-charges">war crimes</a> and claiming those who carried out his orders might also be held to account for doing so.</p>
<p>But <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/01/us/hegseth-drug-boat-strike-order-venezuela.html">The New York Times</a> was not quite ready to go all in on the accusation, and instead cited five officials who said that while Hegseth&#8217;s initial order was to deliver a lethal strike — which would destroy the vessel and the drugs and kill those onboard — there was no specific order given regarding how to proceed if the first strike did not fully accomplish that.</p>
<p><b data-stringify-type="bold">50% off DailyWire+ annual memberships will not return for another year, so don’t miss this deal! Join now at </b><b data-stringify-type="bold"><a class="c-link" href="http://dailywire.com/cyberweek" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="http://DailyWire.com/cyberweek" data-sk="tooltip_parent">DailyWire.com/cyberweek</a></b><b data-stringify-type="bold">.</b></p>
<p>In addition, the officials told the NYT that there was no second command from Hegseth ordering another strike when drone footage showed survivors in the water. Instead, they said that the Special Operations commander overseeing the attack, Admiral Frank M. Bradley, had ordered several follow-up strikes to sink the boat that was disabled by the first hit — and that the survivors were killed as those strikes were carried out.</p>
<p>The Federalist&#8217;s <a href="https://x.com/MZHemingway/status/1995747364196548720">Mollie Hemingway</a> noted that while it certainly tracked that WaPo had run with the story in the first place, it seemed slightly off routine for the NYT to hold back.</p>
<p>&#8220;It is not surprising that the WashPost, which originated the Russia collusion hoax, the Kavanaugh hoax, and the first Trump impeachment hoax, would run another false info op. It IS a bit surprising that the NYT isn’t going along with it in their normal manner,&#8221; she said.</p>
<p>The White House&#8217;s account of what happened squares with the NYT report, however, as Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during Monday&#8217;s briefing that there had been multiple strikes on the drug boat in question, but that the orders had come from Admiral Frank M. Bradley, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/karoline-leavitt-says-hegseth-didnt-order-second-strike-on-narco-terrorists-boat">not Hegseth</a>.</p>
<p>Hegseth followed that revelation with an <a href="https://x.com/PeteHegseth/status/1995643490152128919">X post</a> declaring his support for Bradley, saying, &#8220;Let’s make one thing crystal clear: Admiral Mitch Bradley is an American hero, a true professional, and has my 100% support. I stand by him and the combat decisions he has made — on the September 2 mission and all others since. America is fortunate to have such men protecting us. When this @DeptofWar says we have the back of our warriors — we mean it.&#8221;</p>

<script async src="https://www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<script async src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed.js"></script><div data-widget-host="revcontent" data-pub-id="165152" data-widget-id="290588"></div><script src="https://delivery.revcontent.com/165152/290588/widget.js"></script>

Even The New York Times Isn’t Sold On Washington Post Hegseth Hit

CNN Admits It: America Wants The Bidens To Just ‘Go Away’

Platner Adviser Wanted D*ck Pic In ‘Puberty Guide’ For 10-Year-Old Boys

‘He Lied To Everybody’: Fetterman Says Graham Platner Saga Isn’t Over

Dem Candidate Ditches Church Because She Can’t Stand Trump Voters

SEE IT: New York City Council Turns Chamber Into Drag Runway For ‘Pride Ball’

Move Over, Spencer Pratt. Another Reality Star Wants A Political Shot.

News

Media

Military

Pete Hegseth

Politics

The New York Times

Washington Post

A video goes viral showing a baby being refused his mother by two gay "dads". This is just the tip of the iceberg, which is why we will have an important discussion today about surrogacy. 

Hour 1

The Matt Walsh Show

Ep. 1765 - This Video Is One Of The Worst Things I've Seen In A Long Time 

The Strait of Hormuz officially opens for business (kind of), the Pope makes “shocking” comments on immigration, and President Trump promises UFO disclosure at TPUSA. 


The Michael Knowles Show

Ep. 1956 -  Pope Leo's "SHOCKING" Immigration Comments EXPLAINED

A false miscreed has corrupted our leadership class.


The Andrew Klavan Show

Ep. 1275 - Dumb, Dumber and Progressive

President Trump announces a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel, a murder-suicide involving former Democratic Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax shakes Virginia, and France and Britain hold a conference to secure the Strait of Hormuz – after the Iranian conflict ends. Get the facts first with Morning Wire.

- - -

Ep. 2738

- - -

Wake up with new Morning Wire merch: https://bit.ly/4lIubt3

- - -

Today's Sponsors:

Alliance Defending Freedom - Visit https://JoinADF.com/WIRE or text 'WIRE' to 83848 to learn more.

Pocket Hose - Text MORNING to 64000 to get a FREE pocket pivot and their 10-pattern sprayer with the purchase of ANY size Copper Head hose. Message and data rates may apply.

Morning Wire

U.S. Expands Hormuz Blockade & VA Fairfax Deaths Investigated | 4.17.26

U.S. Expands Hormuz Blockade & VA Fairfax Deaths Investigated | 4.17.26 [Member Exclusive]

A ceasefire goes into effect between Israel and Lebanon, a tragic murder-suicide rocks Virginia, and Dairy Queen deploys AI in the drive-thru. Get the facts first with Evening Wire.
- - -
Ep. 2737
- - -
Wake up with new Morning Wire merch: https://bit.ly/4lIubt3 
- - -
Today’s Sponsor:

Alliance Defending Freedom - Visit https://JoinADF.com/WIRE or text “WIRE” to 83848 to learn more.


Evening Wire: Lebanon Ceasefire Begins & Murder-Suicide Rocks VA | 4.16.26

The Pendragon Cycle

Menu

— News —

Even The New York Times Isn’t Sold On Washington Post Hegseth Hit