Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth laid into legacy media outlets after data compiled by The Media Research Center (MRC) revealed that he had received 100% negative coverage from the three major networks: ABC News, CBS News, and NBC News.
Hegseth responded to the report with a post on X showing the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/major-network-trump-coverage-92-negative-in-first-100-days" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tone of his coverage</a> compared to that of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) adviser Elon Musk — who received 89% negative coverage and 96% negative coverage, respectively.
&#8220;In case you wonder what we — and President Trump — are up against. 100% NEGATIVE coverage from so-call[ed] &#8216;mainstream&#8217; press in the first 100 days. PERFECT SCORE,&#8221; Hegseth quipped. &#8220;(Come on @RobertKennedyJr &amp; @elonmusk, you guys can do better!)&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
In case you wonder what we — and President Trump — are up against.
100% NEGATIVE coverage from so-call “mainstream” press in the first 100 days. PERFECT SCORE.
(Come on <a href="https://twitter.com/RobertKennedyJr?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@RobertKennedyJr</a> &amp; <a href="https://twitter.com/elonmusk?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@elonmusk</a> , you guys can do better!) <a href="https://t.co/uYi2ebI0RG">pic.twitter.com/uYi2ebI0RG</a>
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) <a href="https://twitter.com/PeteHegseth/status/1917535623709155730?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 30, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Hegseth offered a guess as to why the coverage was so overwhelmingly negative when he spoke at Wednesday&#8217;s cabinet meeting, where he told the president and other members of the administration, &#8220;We’re controversial because we’re OVER the target!&#8221;
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
. <a href="https://twitter.com/SecDef?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecDef</a> presented <a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a> with all the accomplishments that the DOD have achieved in the last 100 days:
&#8220;I think we’re controversial because we’re OVER the target!&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/GnznUoK1UE">pic.twitter.com/GnznUoK1UE</a>
— DOD Rapid Response (@DODResponse) <a href="https://twitter.com/DODResponse/status/1917608013684261369?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 30, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Hegseth laid out a number of things that the military had already improved since the Trump administration began — and noted that recruitment numbers were setting records — suggesting that the military&#8217;s response to Hegseth was far more positive than the media&#8217;s.
The data compiled by MRC covered the time frame from January 20 to April 9 and excluded comments made by expressly partisan guests, only including evaluative statements made by people who were expected to be nonpartisan: anchors, reporters, and experts. In addition to finding that Hegseth&#8217;s coverage — beginning even before he was confirmed as Defense Secretary — was 100% negative, the same data revealed that coverage of President Donald Trump was 92% negative. Based on the same criteria, coverage of former President Joe Biden — during the first several months of his presidency in 2021 — was 59% positive.

Pete Hegseth

‘PERFECT SCORE!’: Pete Hegseth Obliterates Legacy Media Over New Study On Bias

Donald Trump

Media

Media Bias

Media Research Center

Politics

President Donald Trump rallied in Michigan on Tuesday night in celebration of his 100 days in office, pointing to actions he has taken, from securing the border to cracking down on woke ideology.
Speaking to thousands at Macomb Community College in Warren, Trump touted the accomplishments of his administration, promising that he was &#8220;just getting started.&#8221; His speech came after he addressed service members at Selfridge Air National Guard Base alongside Democrat Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
&#8220;We&#8217;ve accomplished more in three months than most administrations accomplish in four years or even eight years—and we&#8217;re just getting started, believe me,&#8221; Trump said, urging Congress to pass a &#8220;big, beautiful bill&#8221; that would deliver the largest tax cuts in American history, and ban taxes on tips and overtime.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/POTUS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@POTUS</a>: &#8220;We&#8217;ve accomplished more in 3 months than most administrations accomplish in 4 years or even 8 years—and we&#8217;re just getting started, believe me.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/HYoYm74yDI">pic.twitter.com/HYoYm74yDI</a>
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1917353832566382716?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 29, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Trump also touted his actions to secure the border, pointing to the low number of illegal crossings, a dramatic reversal from the record high number of illegal aliens that crossed in under previous President Joe Biden. He said that while Democrats promised &#8220;mass migration&#8221; and &#8220;mass invasion,&#8221; he was delivering &#8220;mass deportation.&#8221;
Trump also pointed to his actions to eliminate DEI from the federal government and the pressure his administration was putting on schools to drop gender and racial ideologies.
&#8220;I ended all of the lawless so-called Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion bulls*** all across the entire federal government and private sector,&#8221; he said. &#8220;And I made it the official policy of the United States government that there are only two genders: male and female!&#8221;
He touted actions he took to keep men out of women&#8217;s sports and push to end transgender medical procedures on children.
&#8220;I also proudly banned the use of puberty blockers &#8230; all these mutilations of our minor youth, I banned it all,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I signed executive orders to abolish Critical Race Theory and transgender insanity from our schools and from our military.&#8221;
Other highlights of his speech included comments in support of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who he described as a &#8220;tough cookie&#8221; in the face of &#8220;fake news attacks,&#8221; and promises that trillions of dollars were being invested by major companies into the American economy.
&#8220;Trillions of dollars are now pouring into the United States because of common sense,&#8221; he said. &#8220;Apple, great company, was building everything in China. Now they just announced that they’re spending $500 billion to invest in America, not in China.”
Trump&#8217;s speech addressed the rash of district court judges attempting to block many of his actions, asking the Supreme Court to reign in the lower court judges.
“We cannot allow a handful of communist, radical Left judges to obstruct the enforcement of our laws and assume the duties that belong solely to the President of the United States,&#8221; Trump said. &#8220;Judges are trying to take away the power given to the president to keep our country safe.&#8221;
Trump praised the people of Michigan, a state that was critical to both his 2016 and 2024 victories, near the close of his speech.
&#8220;We stand on the shoulders of red-blooded Michigan Patriots — what great people, I love you, Michigan — who laid the railroads, worked the factories, tilled the field, forged the steel, fought the battles, and won the victories that built the Motor City and made this state into the pride of the American Midwest,&#8221; Trump said. &#8220;Michigan is the state that gave us the assembly line, Motown, Ford, General Motors, Chrysler, and put the world behind the wheel of an automobile — and under our leadership, we are making it greater every single day.&#8221;

TOPSHOT-US-POLITICS-TRUMP

‘Just Getting Started’: Trump Vows More Action In ‘100 Days Of Greatness’ Rally

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

Executive

Michigan

President Donald Trump announced Monday the members of his FEMA review council, which he tasked with returning power to state-level emergency managers.
Trump, who has been very critical of FEMA&#8217;s handling of recent natural disasters, signed an executive order in January aimed at bringing serious reform to the agency. In previous interviews, Trump has floated the idea of getting rid of FEMA all together, and handing back responsibility to the states to handle their own emergencies with federal funding.
&#8220;I am proud to announce the formation of the FEMA Review Council, comprised of Top Experts in their fields, who are Highly Respected by their peers,&#8221; Trump <a href="https://x.com/TrumpDailyPosts/status/1916943942156734688">posted</a> on Truth Social. &#8220;I know that the new Members will work hard to fix a terribly broken System, and return power to State Emergency Managers, who will help, MAKE AMERICA SAFE AGAIN. Congratulations to all!&#8221;
Members of the task force include Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, former Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant, RNC Chair Michael Whatley, and Tampa Mayor Jane Castor.
&#8220;As a proud son of Western North Carolina, I have seen first-hand the incredible work of the Trump Administration to help the region recover from Hurricane Helene and look forward to working with these great leaders to bring much-needed reforms to federal emergency response across the country,&#8221; Whatley <a href="https://x.com/ChairmanWhatley/status/1917045935286182331" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> in response to the news.
In his executive order, Trump <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/council-to-assess-the-federal-emergency-management-agency/">said</a> the council will assess “the existing ability of FEMA to capably and impartially address disasters occurring within the United States and shall advise the President on all recommended changes related to FEMA to best serve the national interest.”
The executive order stipulates that the council develop proposals to improve FEMA, survey states and other stakeholders impacted by natural disasters, and produce a comprehensive report on the agency and how disaster relief was handled before its creation.
His executive order also referenced the <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/exclusive-fema-official-ordered-relief-workers-to-skip-houses-with-trump-signs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">story</a> broken by The Daily Wire, revealing that a FEMA supervisor in Florida had ordered FEMA response workers to skip the homes of people with Trump signs or flags in the aftermath of Hurricane Milton.
“There are serious concerns of political bias in FEMA,” Trump wrote in the executive order. “Indeed, at least one former FEMA responder has stated that FEMA managers directed her to avoid homes of individuals supporting the campaign of Donald J. Trump for President.”

President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump Attend Hurricane Briefing at FEMA

Trump Rolls Out FEMA Taskforce To Fix ‘Terribly Broken’ Emergency System

FEMA

Glenn Youngkin

Greg Abbott

Kristi Noem

Michael Whatley

Natural Disaster

U.S.

You knew it was coming. You woke up and the sun seemed a little brighter.
The birds are singing. Planes are flying — mostly full of gang members headed to their new, secure home in El Salvador. Yes, things are returning to normal.
It’s Norming in America.
So go ahead, touch some grass. As Ben Shapiro likes to say, “The era of weird is over and the era of the normie is back.”
And to celebrate Norming in America, we put together this neat video for you.
<iframe loading="lazy" title="It&#039;s Norming in America." width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/P-V3aL9MxtA?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Today, we’re actually arresting shoplifters and fewer businesses are being burned down. All over America, pronouns are being dropped from bios. Men are (still) not having babies. And fewer drag queens are flashing their genitals at children.
What is Norming in America, you ask? Easy.
It’s the return of the word &#8220;illegal.&#8221; It’s Tom Homan on CNN citing chapter and verse of America’s legal code.
It’s leaving &#8220;wokeness and weakness&#8221; behind at the Pentagon. And it’s the sound of federal employees scattering as “Big Balls” from DOGE enters the building.
It’s the return of the Easter Bunny to the White House lawn instead of the trans guy flashing his chest for the camera.
It’s a press secretary who makes sense when she speaks. And it’s trying to keep up with a president who only needs three hours of sleep to make it through the day compared to a president who needed three naps.
It’s the return of biological reality and the removal of men from women’s sports and female prisons.
It’s America feeling like America again.
So join us, and let’s never go back to those weird, angry, divisive times again.

Daily Wire

It’s Norming In America. Feels Different, Doesn’t It?

It's Norming In America. Feels Different, Doesn’t It?

Federal Government

President Trump

The Daily Wire

Tom Homan

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth promised an overhaul of military physical fitness standards — and accountability to ensure that those standards are met — in an X post on Friday, declaring that on his watch, service members would be &#8220;FIT, not FAT!&#8221;
Hegseth was responding to a Military Times <a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/news/pentagon-congress/2025/04/24/more-than-two-thirds-of-reserve-troops-are-overweight-report/#:~:text=The%20Defense%20Department's%20latest%20data,figure%20is%20closer%20to%2068%25." target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> published Thursday revealing that the overwhelming majority — more than two-thirds — of reserve troops did not meet the prescribed weight standards.
&#8220;Completely unacceptable. This is what happens when standards are IGNORED — and this is what we are changing. REAL fitness &amp; weight standards are here. We will be FIT, not FAT,&#8221; Hegseth declared in an X post, noting that part of the problem was the fact that even the existing standards were not being enforced.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Completely unacceptable.
This is what happens when standards are IGNORED — and this is what we are changing. REAL fitness &amp; weight standards are here.
We will be FIT, not FAT. <a href="https://t.co/KWMlFbS1c8">pic.twitter.com/KWMlFbS1c8</a>
&mdash; Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) <a href="https://twitter.com/PeteHegseth/status/1915725082820764054?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 25, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Citing a new study released earlier this week by the American Security Project (ASP), The Military Times reported that an estimated 68% of National Guard and reserve troops would be classified as either overweight or obese. The problem was slightly more pronounced among National Guard members, where some 21% of all personnel are estimated to be obese.
The ASP noted in the study that a large percentage of Active Duty service members are also considered to be overweight or obese. But because National Guard and reserve service members serve and train on a part time basis, enforcing physical fitness standards can be a much more complicated issue than when dealing with those serving in an active duty capacity — but the risks, in addition to the impacts on military readiness, remain high.
&#8220;These service members experience heightened risk for a wide variety of serious health conditions, such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease, and osteoarthritis, which may lead to life-threatening health events such as stroke and heart failure,&#8221; the ASP report stated.
Hegseth has stated repeatedly that his main goal is to restore the United States military&#8217;s reputation as the most lethal fighting force on the planet, and as such, he plans to overhaul and enforce fitness standards that will bring about that end.

250130-D-PM193-1594_(54295724002) copy

‘FIT, Not FAT!’: Pete Hegseth Promises Standard Overhaul After ‘Unacceptable’ Troop Fitness Report

'FIT, Not FAT!': Pete Hegseth Promises Standard Overhaul After 'Unacceptable' Troop Fitness Report

Department of Defense

Military

Trump Administration

Multiple media outlets ran with a story on Wednesday claiming that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had demanded the addition of a make-up studio at the Pentagon where officials could prepare for media appearances.
CBS News White House reporter Jennifer Jacobs shared the news via X, posting, &#8220;News: @SecDef Hegseth recently ordered modifications to the green room next to the Pentagon press briefing room to add a makeup studio that can be used to prep for TV appearances, sources told @CBSNews. The price tag for the project was several thousand dollars. The space previously had minimal furnishings. A new director-style chair and large mirror with makeup lighting was installed. Hegseth has used the briefing room for Fox News hits.&#8221;
It was not until the very end of the post that Jacobs qualified her assertions with a quote from a spokesperson, who confirmed only that the green room had been updated, but added, &#8220;For this upgrade we were deliberately conservative and opted for several less expensive, on-hand materiel solutions.&#8221;
The @DODRapidResponse account fired back with a photo of the updated green room, adding, &#8220;Does the fake news NOT have anything better to do? 1. No lighted mirror. 2. It didn&#8217;t cost thousands. 3. The items that were added to the GREEN ROOM (not a makeup studio) came from existing inventory. This story is TRASH!&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Does the fake news NOT have anything better to do?
1. No lighted mirror. 2. It didn&#39;t cost thousands. 3. The items that were added to the GREEN ROOM (not a makeup studio) came from existing inventory.
This story is TRASH! <a href="https://t.co/hOrF5VNqcg">https://t.co/hOrF5VNqcg</a> <a href="https://t.co/FQzXX4QgpW">pic.twitter.com/FQzXX4QgpW</a>
&mdash; DOD Rapid Response (@DODResponse) <a href="https://twitter.com/DODResponse/status/1915123461631918529?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 23, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Defense Secretary Hegseth also took aim at CBS News, suggesting that he might have gotten more favorable media coverage if he&#8217;d installed tampon dispensers in the Pentagon men&#8217;s rooms.
&#8220;1) Totally fake story. No &#8216;orders&#8217; and no &#8216;makeup&#8217; — but whatever. 2) We should have installed tampon machines in every men’s bathroom at DoD instead — the leftist &#8216;news&#8217; media would have loved that,&#8221; he said.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
1) Totally fake story. No “orders” and no “makeup” — but whatever.
2) We should have installed tampon machines in every men’s bathroom at DoD instead — the leftist “news” media would have loved that. <a href="https://t.co/7LypyVObXJ">https://t.co/7LypyVObXJ</a>
&mdash; Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) <a href="https://twitter.com/PeteHegseth/status/1915180944157196773?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 23, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Chief Pentagon spokesman and Army Ranger veteran Sean Parnell added, &#8220;This story is 100% Fake News.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
This story is 100% Fake News. <a href="https://t.co/ya8hXPeZhh">https://t.co/ya8hXPeZhh</a>
&mdash; Sean Parnell (@SeanParnellATSD) <a href="https://twitter.com/SeanParnellATSD/status/1915223544180465682?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 24, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Still, numerous outlets went on to claim that Hegseth had demanded a &#8220;make-up studio&#8221; at the Pentagon — but while media persisted in chasing the fake story, it was business as usual at the Department of Defense.
Hegseth continued to push an end to &#8220;woke&#8221; policies and programs, saying, &#8220;No more social engineering. No more climate change worship. No more electric tanks. No more gender confusion. No more pronouns. No more excuses. No more quotas. No more WOKE bulls*** that undermines commanders and command climates. We are laser focused on our mission of warfighting.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
. <a href="https://twitter.com/SecDef?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecDef</a> &quot;No more social engineering. No more climate change worship. No more electric tanks. No more gender confusion. No more pronouns. No more excuses. No more quotas.
No more WOKE bullsh*t that undermines commanders and command climates. We are laser focused on our mission… <a href="https://t.co/02v9OTHDij">pic.twitter.com/02v9OTHDij</a>
&mdash; DOD Rapid Response (@DODResponse) <a href="https://twitter.com/DODResponse/status/1915067656266281242?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 23, 2025</a></blockquote>
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Army recruitment announced that it was six full months ahead of schedule with regard to 2025 goals.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
SIX MONTHS ahead of schedule. <a href="https://t.co/Ho6f6xnbB4">pic.twitter.com/Ho6f6xnbB4</a>
&mdash; Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) <a href="https://twitter.com/PeteHegseth/status/1915359536451383408?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 24, 2025</a></blockquote>
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And U.S. military forces overseas continued the onslaught against Iran-backed Houthi terrorists.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Continuous 24/7 operations against Iran-backed Houthis from USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) and USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75)<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HouthisAreTerrorists?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HouthisAreTerrorists</a> <a href="https://t.co/lh5DpvdCOR">pic.twitter.com/lh5DpvdCOR</a>
&mdash; U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) <a href="https://twitter.com/CENTCOM/status/1915188353059692607?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 23, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in Poland

Media Outlets Peddle Pentagon Makeup Studio Story In Latest Effort To Smear Pete Hegseth

President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that he was planning to sit for an interview with The Atlantic&#8217;s editor-in-chief, Jeffrey Goldberg, in spite of the fact that Goldberg has used his outlet to perpetuate &#8220;many fictional stories&#8221; about the president and his administration.
Trump declared his intentions in a post on his Truth Social platform, saying that he planned to take the meeting with Goldberg and two of his writers — both of whom he described as unfriendly to the administration — &#8220;out of curiosity.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
<a href="https://t.co/9ZtlJfRCfZ">pic.twitter.com/9ZtlJfRCfZ</a>
&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1915433979454410756?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 24, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;Later today I will be meeting with, of all people, Jeffrey Goldberg, the Editor of The Atlantic, and the person responsible for many fictional stories about me, including the made-up HOAX on &#8216;Suckers and Losers&#8217; and, SignalGate, something he was somewhat more &#8216;successful&#8217; with,&#8221; Trump began, referencing one story that had circulated during his first term in the White House before pivoting to the recent SNAFU in which Goldberg had accidentally been added to a Signal chat group where high-level administration officials had discussed plans to retaliate against Houthi terrorists in some detail.
Despite the fact that National Security Adviser Mike Waltz took responsibility for the incident — and that Goldberg&#8217;s addition to the group has been linked to an algorithm-based &#8220;contact suggestion&#8221; feature on his iPhone — Democrats and media still attempted to weaponize the story in their efforts to bring down Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
&#8220;Jeffrey is bringing with him Michael Scherer and Ashley Parker, not exactly pro-Trump writers, either, to put it mildly!&#8221; Trump&#8217;s post continued. &#8220;The story they are writing, they have told my representatives, will be entitled, &#8216;The Most Consequential President of this Century.&#8217; I am doing this interview out of curiosity, and as a competition with myself, just to see if it’s possible for The Atlantic to be &#8216;truthful.&#8217; Are they capable of writing a fair story on &#8216;TRUMP&#8217;? The way I look at it, what can be so bad – I WON!&#8221;

President Donald Trump

Trump Agrees To Interview With Repeat Hoax-Peddler Jeffrey Goldberg ‘Out Of Curiosity’

Trump Agrees To Interview With Repeat Hoax-Peddler Jeffrey Goldberg 'Out Of Curiosity'

Signal

The Atlantic

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth continues to take fire, but the commander-in-chief is standing by him. The Trump administration is taking steps to phase out eight synthetic food dyes and issuing warnings about a popular ingredient. And, Trump de-escalates – backing off tariffs and his attacks on the Fed – sending stocks surging. It’s Thursday, April 24, and this is the news you need to know to start your day. If you’d rather listen to your news, today’s edition of the Morning Wire podcast can be heard below:
&nbsp;
<iframe style="width: 100%; max-width: 660px; overflow: hidden; border-radius: 10px;" src="https://embed.podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/military-recruitment-up-rfk-targets-food-dyes-4-24-25/id1576594336?i=1000704704972" height="175" frameborder="0" sandbox="allow-forms allow-popups allow-same-origin allow-scripts allow-storage-access-by-user-activation allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation"></iframe>
&nbsp;
<h2>Trump Stands By Embattled Defense Secretary As Recruitment Soars</h2>
<div id="attachment_911647" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-911647" class="size-large wp-image-911647" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Pete-Hegseth-1-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Pete-Hegseth-1-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Pete-Hegseth-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Pete-Hegseth-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Pete-Hegseth-1-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Pete-Hegseth-1-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Pete-Hegseth-1-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Pete-Hegseth-1-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)</div>
Topline: President Donald Trump is standing by embattled Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, as new data shows soaring military recruitment after years of decline.
There&#8217;s no doubt Hegseth’s tenure at DOD has been tumultuous so far. First, there was what Democrats refer to as SignalGate, in which Hegseth and other cabinet members discussed war plans in an unsecured group chat that accidentally included a reporter. Then, last week, several senior advisors at the Pentagon were fired after an investigation found that they had been leaking sensitive information to the press. 
This week, the negative media coverage continued after the New York Times reported Hegseth had shared details of airstrikes on Yemen in a separate Signal chat that included his wife and brother. Hegseth’s team says his wife is a trusted confidant and that his brother works at the Pentagon, but the story gave yet more fodder to those who want him relieved of his position. 
“What a big surprise that a few leakers get fired and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out from the same media that peddled the Russia hoax…This is what the media does,&#8221; Hegseth said. &#8220;They take anonymous sources from disgruntled former employees and then they try to slash and burn people and ruin their reputations.&#8221;
President Trump also continues to back Hegseth, routinely <a href="https://x.com/cspan/status/1914354554918863075">praising</a> him in statements to the press. &#8220;Pete&#8217;s doing a great job. Everybody&#8217;s happy with him. We have the highest recruitment numbers they’ve had in 28 years…It’s just fake news, they bring up stories. It’s disgruntled employees. He was put there to get rid of a lot of bad people and that’s what he’s doing. You don’t always have friends when you do that.”
Military recruitment numbers have spiked since Trump was elected and Hegseth was appointed. Six months into fiscal year 2025, every single branch is on pace to surpass its recruiting goals. The Navy is on track for its best year in two decades, the Air Force has seen a 20% increase compared to last year, and the Army’s biggest challenge is finding enough space for all its recruits. Last year, it had 55,000 enlistments — with six months to go, they’re already at 52,000! After years of falling short, it could double its target in 2025. According to Army Vice Chief of Staff James Mingus, “we’ve seen momentum unlike anything in a decade.”
&nbsp;
<h2>RFK Jr. Moves To Phase Out Food Dyes</h2>
<div id="attachment_911649" style="width: 932px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-911649" class="size-large wp-image-911649" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Food-Dyes-922x576.jpg" alt="" width="922" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Food-Dyes-922x576.jpg 922w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Food-Dyes-300x187.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Food-Dyes-768x480.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Food-Dyes-1536x960.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Food-Dyes-2048x1279.jpg 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 922px) 100vw, 922px" />(Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)</div>
Topline: HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wants to phase out numerous artificial food dyes and colorings by the end of 2026.
The Department of Health and Human Services is banning petroleum-based synthetic dyes: Red 3 and Red 40, Blue 1 and  2, Yellow 5 and 6, and Green 3. Those are very common in cereals, candy, baked goods, soft drinks, and other junk foods commonly consumed by children.
HHS is implementing several steps to make this happen. First, it will work with food companies to establish a national standard and timeline for moving away from petrochemical-based dyes. HHS wants these phased out, at the latest, by the end of next year. The department will also revoke authorization for two synthetic food colorings &#8211; Citrus Red No. 2 and Orange B – that will happen even sooner &#8211; in the coming months. Red dye No. 3 was banned by the FDA at the end of the Biden administration, but the timeline for its phaseout is years away. Kennedy said he’s looking to speed up that ban. 
HHS will also partner with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to conduct comprehensive research on how these dyes affect children’s health and development. Lastly, the department will authorize four new natural color additives within a matter of weeks, while speeding up the review and approval of other natural color additives. 
“For the last 50 years, American children have increasingly been living in a toxic soup of synthetic chemicals,” FDA Commissioner Dr. Marty Makary said at a press conference with Kennedy on Tuesday. “The scientific community has conducted a number of studies raising concerns about the correlation between petroleum-based synthetic dyes and several health conditions, such as ADHD, obesity, diabetes, insulin resistance, cancer, GI issues – as I’ve seen in the hospital – and allergic reactions.” 
Secretary Kennedy said that there are &#8220;shockingly few” studies on food additives and food dyes, specifically, and suggested that this is because of “conflicts of interest” suppressing the science. RFK also warned the public about the dangers of sugar. He said he’s not able to ban it, but wants parents to understand how harmful and addictive it is. He said it’s as “addictive as crack” and called it “poison.”
&nbsp;
<h2>Economic Update: Trump De-escalates</h2>
<div id="attachment_911643" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-911643" class="size-large wp-image-911643" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Stock-Market-Graph-864x576.jpg" alt="" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Stock-Market-Graph-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Stock-Market-Graph-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Stock-Market-Graph-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Stock-Market-Graph-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Stock-Market-Graph-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Stock-Market-Graph-1800x1200.jpg 1800w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/Stock-Market-Graph-1200x800.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />(Photo by Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)</div>
Topline: Stocks soared Wednesday after reports that President Trump said he has no intention of removing Fed Chair Jerome Powell. 
In recent days, we&#8217;ve seen what appears to be a de-escalation from the Trump administration on many key planks of its economic policy – including reassurances that the trade war with China will be resolved soon and that Powell will not be fired. There&#8217;s been a lot of public negotiating going on from Trump and his team, including some mixed messaging over the last few weeks.
“It was frankly, chaos to start,” EJ Antoni, an economist from the Heritage Foundation, told Morning Wire. “A lot of that is getting resolved – not all of it, but a lot of it… In terms of the de-escalation, I think what we&#8217;re looking for there is essentially agreements one by one just getting hammered out and eventually signed. It looks like trade deals, reducing tariff and non-tariff barriers…as those deals get done, as the details get ironed out, we can look for more free trade, not less. We can look for fairer trade – in other words, not only are American consumer markets still open to foreign producers, but finally foreign consumer markets will be open to our domestic producers.”
Antoni also told us that while the Fed has used its influence over the economy for political advantage, sometimes against President Trump&#8217;s interests, removing him before the end of his term would have caused more unease about the future direction of the economy. “The market doesn&#8217;t really like Jerome Powell, but the idea of removing him creates a tremendous amount of uncertainty, and that&#8217;s the last thing markets need right now.”

US armed forces recruiting station on Times Square

Morning Brief: Trump Stands By Hegseth, RFK Jr. Targets Food Dyes & Stocks Surge

Morning Wire

Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Tariffs

Trade War

On January 24, 2017, just four days after Donald Trump was inaugurated for his first term in office, the FBI sent two agents to the White House to interrogate Trump&#8217;s national security adviser, Michael Flynn. It wasn&#8217;t billed as an interrogation at the time; they convinced Flynn that it was just an opportunity for a friendly chat. But in retrospect, their goal could not have been any more clear: They wanted to manufacture a pretext to secure Flynn&#8217;s termination. Getting rid of Flynn would enable the FBI to continue to conduct a series of fraudulent investigations into the Trump administration. It would insulate the bureau from any kind of large-scale reform. And it would help the FBI spread the narrative that the Trump administration was secretly working for Russia in some way.
Therefore, the FBI asked Flynn a few questions in the White House. Then they convinced Mike Pence that Flynn had lied to them — even though to this day, no one can explain what exactly Flynn said, because the conversation wasn&#8217;t recorded. In any event, Pence took the FBI&#8217;s word for it. Michael Flynn was fired after less than a month. His tenure as national security advisor was the shortest in American history.
<h3><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/episode/ep-1580-the-coordinated-hit-job-on-pete-hegseth-must-be-exposed-and-defeated-member-exclusive?elementPosition=0&amp;row=2&amp;rowHeadline=Latest+Episodes&amp;rowType=Horizontal+Show+Episodes+Carousel" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WATCH: The Matt Walsh Show</a></h3>
What happened to Michael Flynn is worth recalling this week because it was not a one-off. This wasn&#8217;t a random act of sabotage by some unelected, shadowy officials. It was, in fact, standard operating procedure. It is the default response of a bureaucracy that feels threatened. They will come up with a smear campaign, launder it through sympathetic media outlets, and ultimately pressure the decision-makers to get rid of their target. Eight years ago, this is precisely how they got rid of Michael Flynn. And right now, it&#8217;s how they&#8217;re trying to destroy Donald Trump&#8217;s defense secretary, Pete Hegseth.
From the moment Hegseth was nominated, there was a concerted effort to smear him as an alcoholic who was too inexperienced to do the job. It was almost like the Brett Kavanaugh hearings all over again. Anonymous accusations began surfacing every other day. We were even told, if you can believe it, that Pete Hegseth once celebrated St. Patrick&#8217;s Day, live on the air on &#8220;Fox &amp; Friends.&#8221; That was supposed to be profoundly scandalous. In reality, the point of that fake scandal was never to convince anyone of anything. Instead, the point was to send a message to the incoming Trump administration. The message was that the most powerful forces in Washington did not want Pete Hegseth to be confirmed. They wanted Donald Trump to pull his nomination and select someone more conventional — someone who would be more responsive to the needs of defense contractors, for example.
But Trump didn&#8217;t abandon Hegseth&#8217;s nomination. He decided, after what happened in his first term, to trust his own instincts and stand by his selection. The result has been predictable. Just a few months into Donald Trump&#8217;s term, Hegseth&#8217;s enemies have begun yet another smear campaign. And like the campaign to oust Michael Flynn, it&#8217;s not meant to withstand any kind of scrutiny. The point is to move quickly, create panic, and ultimately pressure the White House to fire Hegseth.
It&#8217;s not exactly a subtle operation. Yesterday morning, NPR came out with this story, which directly states the outcome they want to achieve: 
<blockquote>Exclusive: The White House is looking to replace Pete Hegseth as defense secretary.</blockquote>
According to NPR:
<blockquote>The White House has begun the process of looking for a new leader at the Pentagon to replace Pete Hegseth, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly. This comes as Hegseth is again mired in controversy over sharing military operational details in a group chat.</blockquote>
So here we have an unnamed source — just one person, who&#8217;s described only as a &#8220;U.S. official&#8221; — stating that the White House is planning to fire Pete Hegseth. And based on this one nameless official, who supposedly serves somewhere in the United States government, the narrative has been set. Pretty much every outlet picked up this story: They&#8217;re all trying to convey the perception that Hegseth&#8217;s removal is a foregone conclusion.
Meanwhile, there&#8217;s a steady drip of new information that&#8217;s supposedly even more damning than the last hit piece. Tune into CNN, and they&#8217;ll tell you that Hegseth needs to be removed because of a new Signal chat that&#8217;s suddenly been uncovered. Watch:
<iframe loading="lazy" title="004 Ex Hegseth aide" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/NWXmVI-Ge94?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
&nbsp;
Before we go into the specifics, I need to make it clear that I was a fan of the Hegseth pick when it was initially announced. But after seeing this unrelenting smear campaign that started before he was confirmed and hasn&#8217;t let up since, I am now an even bigger fan of the pick. It&#8217;s clear that the establishment sees this guy as a threat to their agenda. He&#8217;s in a position to do extraordinary damage to their interests. And it seems like he&#8217;s already doing a lot of damage — which is why he needs to stay in his position at all costs.
And as you saw, Donald Trump doesn&#8217;t need to be told that. He understands exactly what CNN and the rest of the corporate press are doing. The coverage is breathless and fast-moving because you&#8217;re not supposed to scrutinize it. If you think about it for five seconds, you&#8217;ll realize that — as was the case with Michael Flynn — the hysteria makes absolutely no sense.
To recap: The case against Pete Hegseth is that the national security adviser, Mike Waltz, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-national-security-story?author=Ben+Shapiro&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=The+National+Security+Story" target="_blank" rel="noopener">mistakenly added</a> Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor of The Atlantic, to a classified group chat about a U.S. military strike. Even if this is true — even if we pretend for a moment that a rabidly anti-Trump journalist, with extensive ties to the deep state was somehow &#8220;accidentally&#8221; added to a highly sensitive group chat — it&#8217;s still not remotely clear why Pete Hegseth should be fired as a result. He&#8217;s not the one who made the mistake.
The next alleged scandal, as <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/22/us/politics/hegseth-signal-chat.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> by The New York Times, concerns a Signal chat that involved Hegseth and a dozen other people, including his lawyer, his wife Jennifer and his brother Phil, who works at the Pentagon. The chat, which was called &#8220;Defense Team Huddle,&#8221; also reportedly included Dan Caldwell and Darin Selnick, two former Hegseth advisers who were just fired after a leak investigation. Supposedly, during this chat, Hegseth again discussed war plans involving Yemen, although no one&#8217;s sure exactly what was communicated.
Now, under the circumstances, it would be reasonable to wonder if Dan Caldwell or Darin Selnick might have had a role in placing this story in the New York Times. After all, they were just fired from the Pentagon for leaking. They were both members of this group chat. And now they&#8217;re publicly attacking Pete Hegseth&#8217;s Defense Department, and implying that the Pentagon wants to pursue a reckless war with Iran.
As it relates to unelected operatives in the Pentagon, that may be true. I&#8217;m not in a position to dispute that claim. But anyone who&#8217;s paying attention to what Pete Hegseth is doing, both in public and in private, knows that he&#8217;s going to do everything he can to prevent that outcome.
Here&#8217;s what <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7QTwlqbkbos" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hegseth told</a> Fox News earlier this month:
<blockquote>[Trump] is dead serious that Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. &#8230; He&#8217;s said that for 20 years, he&#8217;s been consistent, that is clear. He&#8217;s dead serious that he wants it done at the negotiating table, he wants it done peacefully, and that&#8217;s why he&#8217;s going straight to these talks, he&#8217;s set that deadline. &#8230; But he&#8217;s also dead serious that if we can&#8217;t figure this out at the negotiating table then there are other options, to include my department to ensure that Iran never has a nuclear bomb.</blockquote>
In other words, his primary objective is not to attack Iran. It&#8217;s a peaceful, diplomatic resolution.
A couple of days later, The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/16/us/politics/trump-israel-iran-nuclear.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">confirmed</a> that, in private, Hegseth had personally helped avert a military strike on Iran that could&#8217;ve spiraled into World War III:
<blockquote>Israel had planned to strike Iranian nuclear sites as soon as next month but was waved off by President Trump in recent weeks in favor of negotiating a deal with Tehran to limit its nuclear program, according to administration officials and others briefed on the discussions. &#8230; Inside the Trump administration, some officials were becoming skeptical of the Israeli plan. In a meeting this month — one of several discussions about the Israeli plan — Tulsi Gabbard, the director of national intelligence, presented a new intelligence assessment that said the buildup of American weaponry could potentially spark a wider conflict with Iran that the United States did not want. A range of officials echoed Ms. Gabbard’s concerns in the various meetings. Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff; Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth; and Vice President JD Vance all voiced doubts about the attack</blockquote>
That report was published on April 16. It states, very clearly, that Hegseth had helped stop a military attack on Iran, which could&#8217;ve easily devolved into all-out warfare.
Four days later, on April 20, the Times published <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/20/us/politics/hegseth-yemen-attack-second-signal-chat.html">a story</a> outlining Hegseth&#8217;s second Signal chat, which is supposedly grounds for his termination. In other words, we get a new scandal, right after Hegseth enrages the defense contractors that would&#8217;ve made many millions of dollars, if not more, from an all-out conflict with Iran. And then, hot on the heels of the new scandal, we get an unverified, barely-sourced report about how the White House is looking to replace Hegseth.
At this point, I can only assume that&#8217;s another fake smear. It would be a disastrous mistake for Trump to cave to the pressure and offer up his Defense Secretary as a sacrifice. It&#8217;s the kind of mistake that could derail his entire presidency. And it would be a major victory for establishment Washington, which is becoming increasingly desperate by the day.
You can see the signs everywhere. Here&#8217;s one of them: On Monday, four more Democrat lawmakers made a <a href="https://thepostmillennial.com/four-dems-denied-meeting-with-kilmar-abrego-garcia-after-flying-to-el-salvador#google_vignette" target="_blank" rel="noopener">pilgrimage</a> to El Salvador to visit that MS-13 gangbanger, following the visit by Senator Chris Van Hollen that we discussed last week. The lawmakers were Robert Garcia of California, Maxwell Frost of Florida, Yassamin Ansari of Arizona, and Maxine Dexter of Oregon. These politicians, like the rest of the Washington establishment, are pulling out all the stops to defend their open borders, globalist agenda. Making a martyr out of Abrego Garcia, and a scapegoat out of Hegseth, is all part of that plan.
To be clear, I see no indication that this is going to work. It doesn&#8217;t look like this MS-13 gangbanger is going to be returned to the United States, any more than it looks like Pete Hegseth is about to be replaced by another Raytheon board member. The idea that the White House is planning to cave to the demands of establishment Washington, at the moment, seems like yet another fabrication from the corporate press. For the sake of the world, which wouldn&#8217;t exactly benefit from nuclear armageddon, it should remain a fabrication and nothing more.

Defense Sec. Pete Hegseth Meets With El Salvador Minister Of National Defense Rene Merino Monroy At The Pentagon

The Coordinated Hit Job On Pete Hegseth Must Be Exposed And Defeated

Democrats

Kilmar Abrego Garcia

Leftists

Matt Walsh

Michael Flynn

New York Times

Opinion

The Swamp

Washington D.C.

While Democrats attempt to run up the score with another story about another Signal chat, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth took to the airwaves on Tuesday morning to make it clear that he has no intention of backing down.
Hegseth spoke with &#8220;Fox &amp; Friends&#8221; anchor Brian Kilmeade about the recent story, in which The New York Times alleges that Hegseth may have disclosed sensitive information in a second <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/defense-department-and-white-house-fire-back-after-latest-hegseth-hit-piece" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Signal chat group</a> — that included his wife, his brother, and his attorney — that he accessed using his personal phone rather than his government phone. National Public Radio (NPR) followed the NYT story with a headline suggesting that President Donald Trump&#8217;s White House was already searching for someone who could replace Hegseth — a claim that both Hegseth and White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt have denied.
WATCH:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
MUST WATCH: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth IS ON FIRE 🔥
&quot;I’m here because President Trump asked me to bring war-fighting back to the Pentagon every single day. 
If people don’t like it, come after me, no worries. I’m standing here, the WARFIGHTERS are behind us, our enemies… <a href="https://t.co/AN5WaSwExc">pic.twitter.com/AN5WaSwExc</a>
&mdash; Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) <a href="https://twitter.com/libsoftiktok/status/1914669279347146800?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 22, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
&#8220;They&#8217;ve come after me from day one,&#8221; Hegseth told Kilmeade on Tuesday morning&#8217;s broadcast, noting that the attacks he&#8217;d endured so far were nothing compared to what had been thrown at President Trump. &#8220;I&#8217;ve gotten a fraction of what President Trump got in that first term. What he&#8217;s endured is super human.&#8221;
&#8220;It&#8217;s not hard for me to do this job, I know exactly why I&#8217;m here,&#8221; Hegseth continued. &#8220;To bring war-fighting and the war-fighting ethos back to the Pentagon. To rip out the insidious ideologies and not compromise and not back down. To bring in new press voices into the Pentagon, which we&#8217;ve done. To reestablish standards and accountability. To not tolerate leakers.&#8221;
Hegseth went on with his list, saying that regaining control of the southern border was part of his job, as was getting rid of &#8220;trans lunacy in the military.&#8221;
&#8220;We haven&#8217;t backed down,&#8221; he added, saying that in the past, people came to Washington to &#8220;play the game&#8221; and often got caught up in the lifestyle and the cocktail parties and the status quo, but it was not his intention to have any part of that.
&#8220;I’m here because President Trump asked me to bring war-fighting back to the Pentagon every single day. If people don’t like it, they can come after me, no worries. I’m standing here, the warfighters are behind us, our enemies know they&#8217;re on notice, our allies know we are behind them, and that in this dangerous world, for the American people, is what it is all about,&#8221; he said.

President Trump Holds “Make America Wealthy Again Event” In White House Rose Garden

‘They Can Come After Me’: Defiant Pete Hegseth Says He’s Not Backing Down

'They Can Come After Me': Defiant Pete Hegseth Says He's Not Backing Down

Fox News

The Defense Department and the White House, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth himself, fired back over an anonymously-sourced New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/20/us/politics/hegseth-yemen-attack-second-signal-chat.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">piece</a> claiming that Hegseth had shared &#8220;highly sensitive military information&#8221; in a second Signal chat group that allegedly included his wife, his brother, and his attorney.
The story comes on the heels of a previous incident in which The Atlantic&#8217;s editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg was mistakenly added to a different Signal chat group — and an attack on Houthi terrorists was described in some detail before Goldberg went public with both his presence in the group and the contents of the conversation. National Security Adviser Mike Waltz ultimately took responsibility for Goldberg&#8217;s accidental inclusion, which may have been linked to his iPhone&#8217;s algorithm that populates &#8220;<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/so-damn-dangerous-signal-chat-breach-linked-to-automated-suggestion-feature-on-iphone" target="_blank" rel="noopener">automated contact suggestions</a>.&#8221;
The second chat group, according to the NYT, was nicknamed &#8220;Defense | Team Huddle&#8221; and was accessed via Hegseth&#8217;s personal phone rather than his government phone. Citing several anonymous sources, the NYT stated that the private Signal chat had included at least two of three DOD officials who were recently relieved of duty amid an investigation into &#8220;unauthorized disclosures&#8221; to media. The article offered no evidence suggesting that Hegseth had ever discussed anything of a sensitive nature in that group.
On Sunday, Defense Department spokesman Sean Parnell released a statement responding to the story:
<blockquote>Another day, another old story—back from the dead. The Trump-hating media continues to be obsessed with destroying anyone committed to President Trump’s agenda. This time, the New York Times — and all other Fake News that repeat their garbage — are enthusiastically taking the grievances of disgruntled former employees as the sole sources for their article. They relied only on the words of people who were fired this week and appear to have a motive to sabotage the Secretary and the President&#8217;s agenda. There was no classified information in any Signal chat, no matter how many ways they try to write the story. What is true is that the Office of the Secretary of Defense is continuing to become stronger and more efficient in executing President Trump&#8217;s agenda. We’ve already achieved so much for the American warfighter, and will never back down.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 4/20/25
STATEMENT:
Another day, another old story—back from the dead. The Trump-hating media continues to be obsessed with destroying anyone committed to President Trump’s agenda. This time, the New York Times — and all other Fake News that repeat their…
&mdash; Sean Parnell (@SeanParnellATSD) <a href="https://twitter.com/SeanParnellATSD/status/1914135704101175583?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Hegseth, who was present at Monday&#8217;s Easter Egg Roll at the White House, responded directly to the story as well:
<blockquote>What a big surprise that a bunch of leakers get fired and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out from the same media that peddled the Russia hoax.
This is what the media does. They take anonymous sources from disgruntled former employees, and then they try to slash and burn people and ruin their reputations. Not going to work with me.
We&#8217;re changing the Defense Department, putting the Pentagon back in the hands of warfighters — and anonymous smears from disgruntled former employees on old news doesn&#8217;t matter.</blockquote>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Pete Hegseth shuts down the fake news media:
&quot;What a big surprise that a bunch of leakers get fired and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out from the same media that peddled the Russia hoax.&quot;
&quot;This is what the media does. They take anonymous sources from disgruntled former… <a href="https://t.co/H4AmR88BJR">pic.twitter.com/H4AmR88BJR</a>
&mdash; Townhall.com (@townhallcom) <a href="https://twitter.com/townhallcom/status/1914322833506697713?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also defended Hegseth during a Monday morning appearance on &#8220;Fox &amp; Friends,&#8221; telling anchor Brian Kilmeade that the president was standing behind Hegseth, &#8220;who is doing a phenomenal job leading the Pentagon.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
.<a href="https://twitter.com/PressSec?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PressSec</a>: &quot;The President stands strongly behind <a href="https://twitter.com/SecDef?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecDef</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/PeteHegseth?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@PeteHegseth</a>, who is doing a phenomenal job leading the Pentagon.&quot; <a href="https://t.co/8exZQSJr5a">pic.twitter.com/8exZQSJr5a</a>
&mdash; Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) <a href="https://twitter.com/RapidResponse47/status/1914299932854407660?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
National Public Radio (NPR) followed up the NYT report with an anonymously-sourced story claiming that the White House was already looking for a replacement for Hegseth — a claim that Leavitt immediately disputed.
&#8220;This @NPR story is total FAKE NEWS based on one anonymous source who clearly has no idea what they are talking about. As the President said this morning, he stands strongly behind @SecDef.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
This ⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/NPR?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NPR</a>⁩ story is total FAKE NEWS based on one anonymous source who clearly has no idea what they are talking about. 
As the President said this morning, he stands strongly behind ⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/SecDef?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecDef</a>⁩. <a href="https://t.co/5Npig8968v">https://t.co/5Npig8968v</a>
&mdash; Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) <a href="https://twitter.com/PressSec/status/1914371752685076757?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
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US-POLITICS-TRUMP

Defense Department And White House Fire Back After Latest Hegseth Hit Piece

Karoline Leavitt

Pentagon

White House

At a time when the Pentagon is finally waking up to the physical collapse of our armed forces, Texas has a unique opportunity to lead.
In March, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth sounded the alarm with <a href="https://www.defense.gov/News/Releases/Release/Article/4118161/rapid-force-wide-review-of-military-standards/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a directive</a>: Military standards have dangerously eroded. “Our adversaries are not growing weaker,” he wrote. “Our tasks are not growing less challenging.”
He ordered a department-wide review of physical fitness, grooming, and readiness standards and <a href="https://x.com/SecDef/status/1907509325804798454" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recently stated</a>, “For too long, we’ve allowed standards to slip within the ranks for men and women serving in combat MOSs. This is unacceptable and over.”
He also welcomed Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to the Pentagon, pledging to ensure our warfighters are “healthy and fit to fight.” These moves reflect a growing recognition of the military’s readiness crisis — and that rebuilding a warrior culture requires action, not speeches.
Texas is answering that call.
The Texas Military Forces Health and Readiness Act (House Bill 4993) is a no-compromise legislative initiative to restore physical readiness, health, and resilience in the Texas Military Forces. It aligns with the Department of Defense’s renewed focus on standards and provides a battle-ready model that other states — and even the federal government — can adopt.
<h3>The Current Readiness Crisis And Systemic Failures</h3>
<div id="attachment_908487" style="width: 876px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-908487" class="size-large wp-image-908487" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2133324574-866x576.jpg" alt="EL PASO, TEXAS - APRIL 02: Texas National Guard soldiers transport border fencing layered with concertina wire near the Rio Grande river on April 02, 2024 in El Paso, Texas. Last week, hundreds of migrants seeking asylum clashed with Texas national guardsmen while waiting to turn themselves in to border patrol agents for processing. Texas continues awaiting a verdict on Senate Bill 4. Attorneys representing the state of Texas are scheduled to return to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans on April 3 to continue arguing for the constitutional basis of the bill. Senate Bill 4 allows state law enforcement officials to detain and arrest undocumented immigrants suspected of illegally crossing into the United States. Thus far, all prior attempts to put the Bill into effect have been blocked by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)" width="866" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2133324574-866x576.jpg 866w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2133324574-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2133324574-768x511.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-2133324574.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 866px) 100vw, 866px" />Brandon Bell/Getty Images</div>
The National Guard plays an increasingly vital dual role: it must respond to domestic crises and be ready to “fight tonight” in peer-level combat operations. Hegseth has emphasized the need to “match threats to capabilities.” But for states like Texas — where the Guard is expected to conduct disaster operations, support border security, and remain deployable worldwide — this mission cannot be met under current conditions.
This isn’t just about pushups. America’s military readiness crisis is real, and it’s gutting our combat capability across the force. Military readiness isn’t a slogan — it’s the bedrock of deterrence and victory. Yet today, 68% of U.S. service members are overweight or obese, according to a 2023 report by the American Security Project. Fitness-related health costs and lost duty time exceed $1.35 billion annually, directly sabotaging operational effectiveness. That’s bad enough for active-duty forces — but for the National Guard, the situation is catastrophic.
If active-duty service members with full access to resources are struggling, the situation for part-time National Guard forces is even more dire. In Texas, part-time Guardsmen train a fraction of the time compared to Active Duty. They are spread across vast distances, often without access to adequate training facilities, wellness programs, or basic fitness infrastructure. Unlike the Active Duty, the Guard operates with persistent disparities in funding, support services, and oversight. Wellness programs go underutilized, accountability is virtually nonexistent, and time for physical training is painfully limited. The result? A force on the edge of collapse — unfit, underprepared, and unable to meet the demands of today’s missions. This isn’t just a training problem. It’s a strategic liability.
<h3>The Army’s Food Scandal: A Symptom Of The Larger Collapse</h3>
Adding insult to injury is the military’s broken nutrition system. A January 2025 Military.com <a href="https://www.military.com/daily-news/investigations-and-features/2025/02/14/over-151-million-taken-soldiers-paychecks-food-costs-spent-elsewhere-army.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">investigation</a> found that the Army diverted over $151 million in food allowance payments from junior enlisted soldiers, with only 30% of those funds actually going toward meals. At Fort Cavazos in Texas, only $11.7 million of $42.5 million collected went to feed troops. Other bases relied on vending machines stocked with sugary snacks, or served meals of toast and lima beans — or no meals at all.
This isn’t just a logistical failure. It’s a betrayal of the trust and conditions necessary for building a capable, professional fighting force. For the National Guard, already starved of resources and time, this neglect is lethal. This is not a military prepared to win wars — it’s a hollow shell.
<div id="attachment_908491" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-908491" class="size-large wp-image-908491" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-1928669611-864x576.jpg" alt="EAGLE PASS, TEXAS - JANUARY 12: National Guard soldiers stand guard on the banks of the Rio Grande river at Shelby Park on January 12, 2024 in Eagle Pass, Texas. The Texas National Guard continues its blockade and surveillance of Shelby Park in an effort to deter illegal immigration. The Department of Justice has accused the Texas National Guard of blocking Border Patrol agents from carrying out their duties along the river. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-1928669611-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-1928669611-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-1928669611-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/04/GettyImages-1928669611.jpg 1024w" sizes="(max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />Brandon Bell/Getty Images</div>
<h3>HB 4993: A Texas-Size Fix</h3>
HB <a href="https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/billtext/html/HB04993I.htm">4993</a> is a Texas-sized solution to this national crisis. It creates a comprehensive, accountable system to rebuild readiness:
<ul>
<li>Statewide Fitness Access: State-funded gym memberships and access to certified civilian trainers ensure Guardsmen across Texas can train consistently, regardless of location.</li>
<li>Integrated Digital Platform: Service members get real-time fitness tracking, customized plans, injury prevention, and mental health tools in a secure app.</li>
<li>Comprehensive Wellness Services: The bill funds rehabilitation, nutrition counseling, mental health support, and family-based fitness programs, because force readiness starts at home.</li>
<li>Performance-Based Culture: Structured incentives, advancement pathways, and public recognition will restore the warrior ethos and reward excellence.</li>
<li>Transparency and Accountability: Quarterly reports to the Legislature, corrective action plans, and unit-level oversight. If readiness falters, the system adapts — now, not later.</li>
<li>Minimal Cost, Maximum Return: This initiative delivers a high-impact return at a fraction of the $1.35 billion national fitness-related losses. This is a high-impact, low-cost readiness reform that delivers immediate and lasting results — saving lives, taxpayer dollars, and national security. </li>
</ul>
<h3>Reinforcing National Readiness Priorities</h3>
For too long, the physical and mental health of our service members has been allowed to rot — not because of funding shortages, but because of cowardice, complacency, and a lack of standards. HB 4993 rejects that failure. It embodies the resolve to act decisively and reforge a professional force worthy of the missions it’s expected to carry out.
This is the moment for Texas to lead. HB 4993 supports the national call to “Make America Healthy Again” and hands other states a clear, scalable playbook. The health, fitness, and discipline of our military are not internal HR concerns — they are national security imperatives.
Readiness isn’t negotiable. It’s the prerequisite for effective deterrence, mission success, and survival in a world of growing threats. Texas is doing its part. Now the Texas Legislature must rise to the occasion — and show the nation what readiness, resolve, and responsibility really look like.
* * *
Ammon Blair is a Senior Fellow for the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s ‘Secure &amp; Sovereign Texas’ Initiative.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

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