HEGSETH’S ‘MONTH FROM HELL’: John Ullyot, a diehard Trump supporter who argued before his confirmation that Pete Hegseth was “the best man to shake things up at a Pentagon,” now says that after “months of total chaos,” his missteps and misjudgments have left the “building in disarray” and that Hegseth should be replaced, after what Ullyot called a “month from hell.”
Beginning with the Signalgate snafu, in which Hegseth shared obviously classified attack plans over an unsecured messaging app and then issued a ham-handed nondenial denial, and ending with the haphazard firing of three top staffers last week, Ullyot, who resigned last week, said enough is enough.
“It’s been a month of total chaos at the Pentagon,” Ullyot wrote in an opinion essay in Politico published last night. “Even strong backers of the secretary like me must admit: The last month has been a full-blown meltdown at the Pentagon — and it’s becoming a real problem for the administration.”
“President Donald Trump has a strong record of holding his top officials to account,” Ullyot said. “Given that, it’s hard to see Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth remaining in his role for much longer.”
FORMER PENTAGON CHIEF SPOKESMAN SUGGESTS ‘TOTAL CHAOS’ COULD LEAD TO HEGSETH OUSTER
‘HEGSETH’S TEAM SPREAD ‘FLAT-OUT, EASILY DEBUNKED FALSEHOODS’: Under fire for his handling of Signalgate, and now facing new allegations that he also improperly shared Yeman strike plans on another private Signal group chat that included his wife, brother, and personal lawyer, Ullyot describes an atmosphere of paranoia about leaks that had led to a “near collapse inside the Pentagon’s top ranks.”
At one point, Ullyot appeared to confirm the story that both Hegseth and Trump flatly denied, that Elon Musk was scheduled to get a top-secret briefing on China, and maintains that the firings of senior adviser Dan Caldwell, deputy chief of staff Darin Selnick, and Colin Carroll, chief of staff to the deputy secretary of defense, were unjustified.
“Officials working for Hegseth tried to smear the aides anonymously to reporters, claiming they were fired for leaking sensitive information,” Ullyot said. “Yet none of this is true. While the department said that it would conduct polygraph tests as part of the probe, not one of the three has been given a lie detector test. Unfortunately, Hegseth’s team has developed a habit of spreading flat-out, easily debunked falsehoods anonymously about their colleagues on their way out the door.”
In a joint statement posted on X, the three staffers said they were “incredibly disappointed” by the manner their service ended. “We understand the importance of information security and worked every day to protect it. At this time, we still have not been told what exactly we were investigated for, if there is still an active investigation, or if there was even a real investigation of ‘leaks’ to begin with.”
THE SECOND SIGNAL CHAT: In a report published yesterday in the New York Times, the newspaper provided details of the previously unreported existence of a second Signal chat in which Hegseth shared many of the same classified details of the upcoming U.S. attacks in Yemen as he did in the separate chat initiated by national security adviser Mike Waltz. The Pentagon Inspector General is investigating the chat.
This chat group, dubbed “Defense | Team Huddle,” was set up on Hegseth’s private phone before his confirmation and included “about a dozen other people from his personal and professional inner circle,” the New York Times reported, including “his wife, brother, and personal lawyer.”
Hegseth’s brother Phil, and Tim Parlatore, who continues to serve as his personal lawyer, both have jobs in the Pentagon. His wife Jennifer, a former Fox News producer, is not a Defense Department employee.
“The details keep coming out. We keep learning how Pete Hegseth put lives at risk. But Trump is still too weak to fire him,” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer posted on X. “Pete Hegseth must be fired.”
The White House dismissed the report, which was confirmed by the Associated Press and CNN, as a “nonstory” and continued to insist “no classified information” was shared. “Recently-fired ‘leakers’ are continuing to misrepresent the truth to soothe their shattered egos and undermine the President’s agenda,” said Anna Kelly, White House deputy press secretary.
“Never a clearer case of liberal media publishing sour grapes from a disgruntled former employee,” Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) posted on X. “Secretary Hegseth is working hard to implement the president’s agenda. And I think it’s safe to say that President Trump doesn’t take staffing advice from Politico.”
HEGSETH POSTED YEMEN STRIKE DETAILS IN SECOND SIGNAL CHAT: REPORT
Good Monday morning and welcome to Jamie McIntyre’s Daily on Defense, written and compiled by Washington Examiner National Security Senior Writer Jamie McIntyre (@jamiejmcintyre) and edited by Christopher Tremoglie. Email here with tips, suggestions, calendar items, and anything else. Sign up or read current and back issues at DailyonDefense.com. If signing up doesn’t work, shoot us an email and we’ll add you to our list. And be sure to follow me on Threads and/or on X @jamiejmcintyre.
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ZELENSKY: RUSSIA VIOLATED EASTER TRUCE 2,000 TIMES: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s self-declared 30-hour Easter truce as a sham, as Ukrainian commanders said Russia appears to be preparing to launch a new ground offensive.
“Since the beginning of the day, the Russian army has violated Putin’s ceasefire more than two thousand times. There have already been 67 Russian assaults against our positions across various directions, with the highest number in the Pokrovsk direction. There were a total of 1,355 cases of Russian shelling, 713 of which involved heavy weaponry. The Russians also used FPVs 673 times,” Zelensky said in a post on X. “Russia has failed to uphold its own promise of ceasefire.”
The truce’s failure shows “the necessity that the text of any ceasefire or peace agreement be publicly available, formally agreed to in advance by all parties, and include robust monitoring mechanisms,” the Washington-based Institute for the Study of War said in its weekend assessment.
TRUMP: HOPEFULLY RUSSIA AND UKRAINE WILL MAKE A DEAL THIS WEEK’: President Trump was in all-caps mode Sunday, and posted multiple upper-case messages on Truth Social, including an unusually optimistic “hope” that Russia and Ukraine will come to terms on a peace deal this week.
“HOPEFULLY RUSSIA AMD (sic) UKRAINE WILL MAKE A DEAL THIS WEEK. BOTH WILL THEN START TO DO BIG BUSINESS WITH THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, WHICH IS THRIVING, AND MAKE A FORTUNE!” he posted, even though neither Russian President Putin nor Ukrainian President Zelensky has given any indication the terms the U.S. laid out in Paris last week are acceptable.
The U.S. ideas were outlined in a confidential document that Secretary of State Marco Rubio presented to Ukraine Thursday, and according to the Wall Street Journal, would grant “far-reaching” concessions to Russia, including U.S. recognition of Crimea as Russian territory and excluding Kyiv from joining NATO.
The hopeful post comes after increasing pessimism about the prospects for any settlement. Secretary of State Marco Rubio indicated that Trump is willing to walk away from the peace process if there is no breakthrough soon.
“We need to figure out here now, within a matter of days, whether this is doable in the short term. Because if it’s not, then I think we’re just going to move on,” Rubio said in Paris Friday.
“Marco’s right in saying that,” Trump said later Friday. “We want to see it end … Think of it — every day, a lot of people are being killed as we talk about, you know — as they play games. So we’re not going to take that.”
“Now, if, for some reason, one of the two parties makes it very difficult, we’re just going to say you’re foolish, you’re fools, you’re horrible people, and we’re going to just take a pass. But hopefully we won’t have to do that.”
“I have to see. My whole life has been one big negotiation, and I know when people are playing us, and I know when they’re not,” Trump told CBS News Friday. “And I have to see an enthusiasm to want to end it.”
FITZPATRICK: IT’S ‘ENTIRELY UP TO VLADIMIR PUTIN: Fresh back from a visit to Kyiv, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA) says Zelensky, who he called a “friend and a great leader,” has “justifiable concerns,” about the rare earth minerals deal Trump is demanding be signed this week.
“Did you talk about the status of the peace agreement that the U.S. is trying to broker?” asked CBS’s Weijia Jiang.
“Well, that remains to be seen, and it depends on what’s in the deal,” Fitzpatrick said. “That is entirely up to Vladimir Putin. The man has never kept his word ever in any context, as far as I’m aware. So we have to know what we’re dealing with. Our government, I hope, knows who they’re dealing with, with Vladimir Putin. He’s not a man of his word. He’s not interested in peace.”
TOM ROGAN OPINION: TRUMP’S CHAOTIC EUROPEAN DEFENSE SPENDING MESSAGING
THE RUNDOWN:
Washington Examiner: Former Pentagon chief spokesman suggests ‘total chaos’ could lead to Hegseth ouster
Washington Examiner: Hegseth posted Yemen strike details in second Signal chat: Report
Washington Examiner: Ukraine says Russia violated ‘Easter truce’ nearly 3,000 times
Washington Examiner: Trump ‘not in a rush’ to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities
Washington Examiner: Iran says nuclear enrichment is ‘nonnegotiable’ after Witkoff flips on the issue
AP: US airstrikes kill 12 people in Yemen’s capital, Houthis say
Washington Examiner: US launches airstrikes on Houthi-controlled oil port in Yemen, killing at least 38
Washington Examiner: Van Hollen meets with Abrego Garcia after several failed attempts
Washington Examiner: Van Hollen says Bukele making ‘huge mistake’ by not releasing Abrego Garcia
Washington Examiner: Trump calls Van Hollen a ‘fool’ for meeting with Kilmar Abrego Garcia
Washington Examiner: Trump attacks ‘Radical Lunatic’ Democrats for distorting Abrego Garcia’s background
Washington Examiner: How Bessent and Lutnick were able to outmaneuver Navarro in tariff battle
Washington Examiner: Putin gushes over Elon Musk in talk with Russian students
Washington Examiner: Trump administration to install 17 miles of buoys in river at US-Mexico border
Washington Examiner: Tom Rogan Opinion: Trump’s chaotic European defense spending messaging
Washington Examiner: Tom Rogan Opinion: Putin’s Christian nationalist mirage
Wall Street Journal: Kyiv Is On the Clock to Respond to Trump Plan to End Ukraine Conflict
Wall Street Journal: US Accuses China of Helping the Houthis Target Their Attacks
Politico: ‘Bonkers crazypants’: American diplomats shaken by reports of possible cuts
Washington Post: Sensitive documents, including White House floor plans, improperly shared with thousands
Washington Post: Tragedy killed 4 U.S. soldiers in Lithuania. A small army got them home.
Wall Street Journal: Sweden Has the Tanks. Finland Has the Troops. Welcome to the Pan-Nordic Army
BBC News: RAF Jets Intercept Russian Aircraft Near NATO Airspace
The Guardian: Israel Has ‘No Choice’ but to Continue Fighting in Gaza, Says Netanyahu
AP: Countries Shore Up Their Digital Defenses as Global Tensions Raise the Threat of Cyberwarfare
Axios: US Slashing Military Presence in Syria
Air & Space Forces Magazine: NGAD Images Doctored to Hide Most, If Not All, True Design Features
Defense One: Industry Eyes ‘Wicked Hard’ Golden Dome Space Interceptor Challenge
The War Zone: MQ-1C Gray Eagle Is Shooting Down Drones with Hellfire Missiles in Tests
DefenseScoop: Former Army AI Leader Tapped as Pentagon’s Next CDAO
SpaceNews: NRO Reaches Milestone with Over 200 Satellites Deployed in Two Years
Air & Space Forces Magazine: As Military SATCOM Use Grows, Rivals Vie to Cut SpaceX’s Market Share
Breaking Defense: NGA Field Testing New Processor to Speed Imagery to US Regional Commands
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Air Force MAJCOMs, Given New Guidance, Pull Back on Family Days
THE CALENDAR:
MONDAY | APRIL 21
2 p.m. — Hudson Institute discussion: “The Situation in Afghanistan and America’s Interests in the Region,” with Ali Nazary, head of external affairs at the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan; Lisa Curtis, Center for a New American Security senior fellow; former Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. John Keane; Luke Coffey, senior fellow at the Hudson Center on Europe and Eurasia; and Jeremy Hunt, media fellow at the Hudson Institute https://www.hudson.org/events/situation-afghanistan-americas-interests-region
TUESDAY | APRIL 22
6:15 a.m. 2425 Wilson Blvd., Arlington, Va. — Association of the U.S. Army “Coffee Series” discussion with Army Vice Chief of Staff Gen. James Mingus https://www.ausa.org/events/coffee-series/gen-mingus
9:30 a.m. — Brookings Institution virtual discussion: “Ally to Adversary? The U.S. and Europe in Trump’s Second Term,” with Fiona Hill, senior fellow at the Brookings Foreign Policy Program and the Brookings Center on the U.S. and Europe; Melanie Sisson, senior fellow at the Brookings Foreign Policy Program and the Brookings Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology; Tara Varma, visiting fellow at the Brookings Foreign Policy Program and the Brookings Center on the U.S. and Europe; and Constanze Steizenmuller, director of the Brookings Center on the U.S. and Europe, senior fellow at the Brookings Foreign Policy Program and the Brookings Center on the U.S. and Europe, and Brookings chair on Germany and Trans-Atlantic relations https://www.brookings.edu/events/ally-to-adversary
10 a.m. — George Washington University Project for Media and National Security and Special Competitive Studies Project Defense Writers Group Zoom report discussion: “Applying AI to Strategic Warning,” with Nandita Balakrishnan, a co-author, and Special Competitive Studies Project Director for Intelligence [email protected]
11:15 a.m. — Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies virtual discussion: beginning at 11:15 a.m., on “Ice to Meet You, Greenland? U.S. Acquisition Attempts,” with Nitin Nainani, judicial law clerk at the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida; Romain Chuffart, president and managing director of the Arctic Institute; and Alexander Gray, senior fellow in national security affairs at the American Foreign Policy Council https://fedsoc.org/events/ice-to-meet-you-greenland-u-s-acquisition-attempts
5 p.m. — Common Good virtual discussion: beginning at 5 p.m., on “The Limits of Presidential Power,” with former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, chairman of the Panetta Institute for Public Policy; former Rep. David Jolly (R-Fl); and Richard Salomon, lawyer and CEO of Vantage Point Consultants https://www.thecommongoodus.org/upcoming-events/the-limits-of-presidential-power
WEDNESDAY | APRIL 23
8:50 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW — Center for Strategic and International Studies Global Development Forum: “The Role of Mining and Minerals for Ukraine’s Reconstruction and the Future of the U.S.-Ukraine Relationship: Reforming U.S. Foreign Assistance” https://www.csis.org/events/2025-global-development-forum
9 a.m. 1201 15th St. NW — Defense Strategies Institute Assured Positioning, Navigation, and Timing Summit, April 23-24, with Vice Adm. Christopher Grady, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, delivers remarks on “Assuring PNT Capabilities to Enable Military Superiority in Contested Environments” CLOSED PRESS https://pnt.dsigroup.org/
9 a.m. 1615 H St. NW — U.S. Chamber of Commerce Global Summit, April 22-23, with Norwegian Finance Minister and former NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg; Canadian Ambassador to the U.S. Kirsten Hillman; European Union Ambassador to the U.S. Jovita Neliupsiene; Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA); and Gov. Andy Beshear (D-KY) https://www.uschamber.com/events/global-summit
8 p.m. — Jews United for Democracy and Justice virtual discussion: “Trump’s Foreign Policy: The Impact on Global Democracy and U.S. National Security,” with Michael McFaul, former special assistant to President Obama, professor at Stanford University, former senior director for Russian and Eurasian Affairs on the White House’s National Security Council and former U.S. ambassador to Russia; and Larry Diamond, senior fellow in Stanford University’s Freeman Spoogli Institute for International Studies https://www.jewsunitedfordemocracy.org/blog/even
THURSDAY | APRIL 24
9 a.m. — Henry L. Stimson Center virtual discussion: “Fighter Jets and Drones: Is China’s Military Aid to the Myanmar Junta Making a Difference?” with Zachary Abuza, professor, National War College; Nyein Nyein Thant Aung, graduate of the University of Glasgow; and Pamela Kennedy, research analyst, Stimson East Asia Program https://www.stimson.org/event/china-military-aid-to-myanmar-junta/
10 a.m. — National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations virtual discussion: “A Post-Assad Syria: Dilemmas, Diplomacy, and a New Strategic Vision,” with Timothy Lenderking, senior official at the State Department’s Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs; former U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford; fellow at the Middle East Institute; Caroline Rose, director of the New Lines Institute for Strategy and Policy; Neil Quilliam, associate fellow at the Chatham House Middle East and North Africa Program; H. Delano Roosevelt, NCUSAR president and CEO; and Fadi Hilani, NCUSAR senior academic and research fellow-in-residence https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9MLYTfzay7Q
10 a.m. 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies discussion: “Russia’s Strategic Shift in North Africa,” with Federica Saini Fasanotti, senior associate fellow at the Institute of International Policy Studies; Emadeddin Badi, nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council; Hafed Al-Ghwell, senior fellow at the SAIS Foreign Policy Institute; and Andrea Cellino, vice president and head of North Africa at the Middle East Institute Switzerland https://www.youtube.com/@thenorthafricainitiative660/streams
10:30 a.m. 1957 E St. NW — George Washington University Sigur Center for Asian Studies discussion: “The First 100 Days: Trump 2.0 and New Dynamics in U.S.-Taiwan and Cross Strait Relations.” https://sigur.elliott.gwu.edu/2025/04/07/4-24-25-the-first-100-days
5 p.m. 555 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies Institute for America, China, and the Future of Global Affairs film screening and discussion of “Lithium Rising: The Race for Critical Minerals,” with director Samuel George, director of Bertelsmann Foundation Documentaries; Stuart Levenbach, associate director for natural resources, energy, science and water at the Office of Management and Budget; Abigail Hunter, executive director of the SAFE Center for Critical Minerals Strategy; and Margaret Myers, SAIS ACF managing director RSVP: [email protected]
FRIDAY | APRIL 25
8 a.m. — George Washington University Elliott School of International Affairs Institute for European, Russian, and European Studies virtual Third Annual Petrach Program Conference on Ukraine: “Understanding Wartime Ukraine” https://tinyurl.com/4fa4amak
9 a.m. 1616 Rhode Island Ave. NW — Center for Strategic and International Studies Project on Nuclear Issues report launch: “The Future of Arms Control and Euro-Atlantic Strategic Stability,” with Heather Williams, director of the CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues and senior fellow in the CSIS Defense and Security Department; Nicholas Adamopoulos, associate director and associate fellow at the CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues; Lachlan MacKenzie, research associate at the CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues; Catherine Murphy, program coordinator and research assistant at the CSIS Project on Nuclear Issues https://www.csis.org/events/report-launch-future-arms-control
9 a.m. — Peterson Institute for International Economics virtual discussion: “Europe’s Future in 3D: Fiscal Trade, and Defense Challenges,” with Cecilia Malmstrom, PIIE nonresident senior fellow, former European Commissioner for Home Affairs and former European Commissioner for Trade; Constanze Stelzenmuller, director and senior fellow for foreign policy at the Brookings Institution’s Center on the U.S. and Europe and chair on Germany and Trans-Atlantic relations at the Brookings Institution; Oliver Blanchard, PIIE senior fellow; and Adam Posen, PIIE president https://www.piie.com/events/2025/europes-future-3d-fiscal-trade-and-defense-challenges
2 p.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: “Global Counterspace Trends,” with former Assistant Secretary of State for Arms Control, Deterrence, and Stability Mallory Stewart; Victoria Samson, chief director of space security and stability at the Secure World Foundation; Clayton Swope, deputy director of the CSIS Aerospace Security Project and senior fellow at the CSIS Defense and Security Department; Makena Young, fellow at the CSIS Aerospace Security Project; Laetitia Cesari Zarkan, researcher and legal practitioner at the Secure World Foundation; and Karl Bingen, director of the CSIS Aerospace Security Project and senior fellow at the CSIS Defense and Security Department https://www.csis.org/events/report-launch-space-threat-assessment-2025
