TRUMP: GENERALS ‘NOT PRESS PEOPLE’: Donald Trump, one of the most accessible presidents in American history, says dealing with the press is a special skill, one most senior military officers simply don’t possess. “They don’t really deal with the press, so they’re not really, necessarily good at it, although I think it’s mostly instinctual one way or the other. You’re either good at things or you’re not.”
Trump’s comments at a White House event on Tuesday came as his War Secretary Pete Hegseth implemented stringent new restrictions on reporters with Pentagon access, prompting every self-respecting news organization (including the Washington Examiner) to turn in their credentials and vacate the building.
“I think he finds the press to be very disruptive in terms of world peace and maybe security for our nation,” Trump said, when asked if he backed Hegseth’s media crackdown. “The press is very dishonest.”
“When it comes to war and now our great Department of War, we have some great people over there,” Trump said. “It bothers me to have soldiers and even high-ranking generals walking around with you guys on their sleeve,” he added.
“They’re not press people,” he said. “They can make a mistake, and a mistake can be tragic. They can do it innocently, too.”
HEGSETH: DON’T LET THE DOOR HIT YA: Hegseth has made no secret of his disdain for the press, and his new rules were the latest in a series of restrictions designed to make it harder for reporters to interact with anyone but the official spokespeople in his office.
When he arrived at the Pentagon, Hegseth was aghast by the decadeslong culture of openness, in which the media and the military had a cordial and respectful relationship, and reporters could walk almost all of the building’s 17-and-a-half miles of corridors. Among his first moves was to evict perceived left-leaning media from their workspaces and restrict reporters to a small area of the building, putting the hallway outside his office and miles of others off-limits.
“It used to be, Mr. President, the press could go anywhere, pretty much anywhere in the Pentagon, the most classified area in the world,” Hegseth told Trump yesterday, accusing the media of trying to “get soldiers to break the law by giving classified information.”
“Maybe the policy should look like the White House or other military installations where you have to wear a badge that identifies that you’re press, or you can’t just roam anywhere you want,” said Hegseth, who responded as news organization after news organization posted on X they were leaving with a waving hand emoji.
When the major television networks ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, and Fox released a joint statement calling Hegseth’s policy “without precedent” and a threat to “core journalist protections,” the list of exiting media outlets grew to 41, leaving One America News as the sole remaining occupant of the once-proud Correspondents Corridor.
KIRBY: ‘NO WINNERS HERE’: The end of an independent media presence inside the building was decried by former defense secretaries, Pentagon spokespeople, and retired military officers.
“The new Pentagon media policy is not wise. The media has never had unfettered Pentagon access,” said retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Don Bacon, a Republican Nebraska congressman, who did two tours at the Pentagon. “Yes, they have access to the hallways, cafeteria. They did not have access to the offices. They sure did not have access to classified offices.”
“We’re not Russia. We’re not China. We’re not North Korea,” Bacon said on NewsNation. “I think it is amateur hour.”
“They don’t have access to classified spaces. They can’t just walk into any office space that they want to. If they want to interview a general or an admiral, in that admiral or general’s office, they have to get permission and be escorted in there,” said retired Rear Adm. John Kirby, a former Pentagon spokesman. “The notion that they just walk freely, unfettered by any security protocols, is just not accurate. Now, they do have more free rein at the Pentagon than they do at the State Department, for instance. But again, it’s all monitored. They have to wear badges. They’ve never had a problem wearing security badges.”
“I think there’s really no winners here, certainly not the Defense Department and not the American people who rely so much on the terrific reporting coming out of the Pentagon press corps,” Kirby said, noting that among many sourced stories reported by Pentagon reporters was a 2007 USA Today story about the need for Mine Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles to protect troops from roadside bombs.
“It was that story in USA Today which prompted then Defense Secretary Bob Gates to really put his spurs in and get the military to comply with that and get those MRAPs in the field, and the analysis showed over a number of years that they saved maybe 10,000 or more lives,” Kirby said on CNN.
“The fact is, the press has every right to be able to report the news. And I just think that it’s blatantly unconstitutional,” former Defense Secretary and Central Intelligence Agency Director Leon Panetta said on CNN. “Why raise that concern? Because it looks like you’re trying to hide something from the American people. You know, being open about the truth is the best policy you can have when you’re secretary of defense.”
“What I’d recommend [is] the secretary take a look at is Hugo Black’s decision in the Pentagon papers. And let me just read a few lines from that,” Panetta said. “And I quote, ‘No branch of government can abridge the people’s freedom of the press.’ Another quote, ‘The press must be left free to publish the news, whatever the source. And finally, ‘Only a free press can expose deception in the government.’ What he’s trying to do is clearly restrict the freedom of the press here to be able to report on the news.”
UNDERSTANDING THE PENTAGON’S DISPUTE WITH THE MEDIA
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TRUMP TO HAMAS: ‘DISARM OR WE WILL DISARM THEM’: Two days into the historic, but fragile ceasefire brokered by President Trump between Hamas and Israel, Hamas appeared to be balking at a key provision of the deal — disarming — in preparation to cede power to an internationally supervised body that has yet to be formed.
“Well, they’re going to disarm, because they said they were going to disarm. And if they don’t disarm, we will disarm them,” Trump said at yesterday’s luncheon meeting with Argentine President Javier Milei. When he was asked how disarmament would be accomplished, Trump snapped back, “I don’t have to explain that to you, but if they don’t disarm, we will disarm them. They know I’m not playing games.”
So far, Hamas has rejected giving up its weapons, raising the specter of renewed fighting. “We agreed to give peace a chance,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told CBS News Tuesday in Tel Aviv. “First, Hamas has to give up its arms.”
“Hamas security forces have returned to the streets, clashed with armed groups, and killed alleged gangsters in what the militant group says is an attempt to restore law and order in areas where Israeli troops have withdrawn,” the Associated Press reported. “Powerful local families and armed gangs — including some anti-Hamas factions backed by Israel — stepped into the void. Many are accused of hijacking humanitarian aid and selling it for profit, contributing to Gaza’s starvation crisis.”
“You know, they did take out a couple of gangs that were very bad. Very, very bad gangs. And they did take them out, and they killed a number of gang members,” Trump said. “And that didn’t bother me much, to be honest with you. That’s OK. That’s a couple of very bad gangs.”
Last night, on Sean Hannity’s Fox News program, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) suggested Israel may have to send forces back into the areas it just withdrew from. “As I speak tonight, there are discussions in Israel about potentially going back in to save those tribes and clans that had the guts to stand up against Hamas,” Graham said.
TRUMP THREATENS ‘VIOLENT’ REPERCUSSIONS IF HAMAS DOESN’T DISARM
ANOTHER BOATLOAD OF ALLEGED NARCO-TERRORISTS ELIMINATED: The U.S. military, under orders from President Trump, carried out the fifth lethal strike on a suspected drug smuggling speedboat in the waters off the coast of Venezuela.
Trump announced the strike on his Truth Social account, which included a video of the small boat floating in the water before it disappeared behind the burst of light as seen through a thermal image from what appeared to be a drone.
“Intelligence confirmed the vessel was trafficking narcotics, was associated with illicit narcoterrorist networks, and was transiting along a known DTO [Designated Terrorist Organization] route,” Trump said in the post. “The strike was conducted in International Waters, and six male narcoterrorists aboard the vessel were killed in the strike.”
Democrats — and a few Republicans — have raised questions about the legality of the strike, but Trump insisted that his War Secretary Pete Hegseth ordered the boat destroyed “Under my Standing Authorities as Commander-in-Chief.”
Last week, Senate Republicans narrowly fended off an effort to block further strikes by the U.S. military without congressional authorization. “The President’s authorities under Article II are limited to responding to an armed attack or the threat of an imminent armed attack and do not apply here,” Sen. Adam Schiff (D-CA) posted on X. “These continued strikes — 27 killed to date — risk getting the U.S. into a full-fledged war. @SenTimKaine and I forced a bipartisan vote to block these strikes last week. If they continue, we will do so again.”
TRUMP: TROOPS WILL BE PAID: President Trump insisted he “identified funds” to pay active-duty military troops during the shutdown, even as Democrats claimed that’s not legal.
And yesterday, Trump said an unnamed benefactor was ready to step in if needed. “I actually have a man who is a very wealthy person — you’ll know that when I tell you this — who called, a donor, a great gentleman, and he said, ‘If there’s any money necessary, shortfall for the paying of the troops, then I will pay it,’ meaning he will pay it. How about that?”
“I said, ‘Look, we’re not going to need it. We’re going to take care of our troops.’”
“My understanding of this is they have every right to move the funds around — duly-appropriated dollars from Congress to the Department of Defense,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said yesterday. “There were some R&D accounts that had not been spent, and it — that’s my understanding, is that’s the money that’s being used to pay the troops right now.”
“If the Democrats want to go to court and challenge troops being paid, bring it, OK?” Johnson said. “I’m grateful for a commander in chief who understands the priorities of the country, the necessity of national defense, and the urgency that we all feel and have voted for eight times.”
JOHNSON WATCHING ‘CLOSELY’ ON WHETHER CONGRESSIONAL INTERVENTION NEEDED FOR ANTI-ICE PROTESTS
THE RUNDOWN:
Washington Examiner: Understanding the Pentagon’s dispute with the media
Washington Examiner: Trump to attend Cambodia-Thailand peace deal signing in Malaysia
Washington Examiner: Trump threatens ‘violent’ repercussions if Hamas doesn’t disarm
Washington Examiner: Hamas executes rivals, cracks down on civilians in post-deal Gaza power vacuum
Washington Examiner: Graham says Israel discussing reinvading Gaza to support anti-Hamas factions
Washington Examiner: Johnson watching ‘closely’ on whether congressional intervention needed for anti-ICE protests
Washington Examiner: Trump floats moving press out of White House after media rejects Pentagon restrictions
Washington Examiner: Some Texas National Guard troops replaced after Hegseth push for higher fitness standards
Washington Examiner: Opinion: Trump’s China negotiations must strengthen accountability in South Korea
Washington Examiner: Hugo Gurdon Opinion: What the Middle East peace has brought, and what it hasn’t
AP: Israelis are identifying the second group of bodies handed over by Hamas as tenuous truce holds
AP: Hamas Reasserts Control in a Chaotic Gaza, Posing a Risk to the Fragile Ceasefire
AP: Russia is attacking Ukraine’s vital rail network with more precise drones
Washington Post: Hegseth’s legal fixer at the center of Pentagon’s new media restrictions
Task & Purpose: Troops Are Starting to Get Paid, But Aren’t Out of the Woods as Shutdown Continues
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Hegseth Wants Basic to Go Old School. What Policies Must Change First?
CBS News: Members of B-2 bomber team recall strikes on Iranian nuclear sites: ‘The performance was perfect.’
Defense News: First Shots in Future Fights Will Be Fired in Cyberspace, Leaders Warn
The War Zone: US Army General In Europe Admits ‘We’re Behind’ on Drones
The Atlantic: Opinion: Putin Is Not Winning
Air & Space Forces Magazine: Pentagon’s New Counter-Drone Task Force to Arm Future ACE Airmen
Air & Space Forces Magazine: DOD Canceled the Air Force’s $1.4B ‘Cloud One’ Contract. Did it Save Any Money?
The National Interest: Is Qatar Getting an Idaho Air Base? Not Exactly.
Breaking Defense: Lockheed, Germany’s Diehl Sign PAC-3 MSE Pact to Boost Supply Chain Resilience
AP: High-speed Border Patrol chase ends in arrest, tear gas used on protesters on Chicago’s South Side
Air & Space Forces Magazine: CMSAF Flosi Says He Will Retire
THE CALENDAR:
WEDNESDAY | OCTOBER 15
9 a.m. Washington Convention Center — Association of the U.S. Army Annual Meeting Symposium and Exposition,” through Oct. 5.https://www.ausa.org/meet
10 a.m. 1201 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — Hudson Institute conference: “Vanguard of Manufacturing: Fortifying U.S. National Security, with John Maslin, founder and CEO, Vulcan Elements; Austin Grey, co-founder and chief strategy officer, Blue Water Autonomy; Peter Meijer, co-founder and head of strategy, New Industrial Corporation; Patrick Hunt, general partner at New Industry VC; and Julius Krein, president of the New American Industrial Alliance https://www.hudson.org/events/vanguard-manufacturing-fortifying-us-national-security
11 a.m. Charlottesville, Virginia — University of Virginia Miller Center in-person and virtual discussion: “U.S.-China relations in Trump’s second term,” with Scott Kennedy, senior adviser and trustee chair in Chinese Business and Economics, Center for Strategic and International Studies; Brantly Womack, Miller Center faculty senior fellow; and Aynne Kokas, director, University of Virginia’s East Asia Center https://millercenter.org/news-events/events/us-china-relations-trumps-second-term
1 p.m. — Middle East Institute virtual discussion: “The Future of Turkey’s Defense Sector,” with Missy Ryan, staff writer, The Atlantic; Iulia-Sabina Joja, MEI senior fellow; Jason Campbell, MEI senior fellow; and Gonul Tol, MEI senior fellow https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register
1 p.m. — Center for a New American Security virtual discussion: “Countering China’s Digital Silk Road,” former Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell; James Palmer, deputy editor at Foreign Policy and author of Foreign Policy’s weekly newsletter China Brief; Jonathan Hillman, senior fellow for geoeconomics at the Council on Foreign Relations and author of “The Digital Silk Road: China’s Quest to Wire the World”; Ruth Berry, senior director and head of policy at NVIDIA Government Affairs; Vivek Chilukuri, CNAS senior fellow; and Ruby Scanlon, research associate at the CNAS Technology and National Security Program https://www.cnas.org/events/virtual-event-countering-chinas-digital-silk-road
1 p.m. 1201 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — Hudson Institute discussion: “Stability, Security, and Prosperity in Southeastern Europe: A Priority for the Transatlantic Community,” with Romanian Finance Minister Alexandru Nazare; Anca Dragu, governor of the National Bank of Moldova; Jan Ruzicka, chief external affairs officer at the PPF Group; Philip Kosnett, Center for European Policy Analysis senior fellow; and Justin Siberell, president for regions and corporate relations at Bechtel https://www.hudson.org/events/stability-security-prosperity-southeastern-europe
FRIDAY | OCTOBER 17
9 a.m. 1201 Pennsylvania Ave. NW — Hudson Institute virtual discussion: “What Is North Korea’s Strategy?” with Glenn Chafetz, director, 2430 Group; retired South Korean Lt. Gen. In-bum Chun; Bruce Klingner, senior fellow, Mansfield Foundation; Dr. Taerim Lee, visiting Scholar, Institute for Korean Studies, George Washington University; and Patrick Cronin, Asia-Pacific Security chair, Hudson Institute https://www.eventbrite.com/e/what-is-north-koreas-strategy
MONDAY | OCTOBER 20
10 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies Defense and Security Department and the U.S. Naval Institute virtual discussion: “Submarines in an Era of Renewed Great Power Competition,” with Vice Adm. Robert “Rob” Gaucher, commander, Naval Submarine Forces, commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet;aCommander, Allied Submarine Command; retired Rear Adm. Raymond Spicer, CEO and publisher, U.S. Naval Institute; and Seth Jones, president, CSIS DSD https://www.csis.org/events/submarines-era-renewed-great-power-competition
WEDNESDAY | OCTOBER 29
11 a.m. Charlottesville, Virginia — University of Virginia Miller Center in-person and virtual discussion: “AI, national security, and democratic accountability,” with Ashley Deeks, Miller Center faculty senior fellow, and vice dean of the University of Virginia School of Law; Brian Lessenberry, senior national security practitioner; and Philip Potter, Miller Center faculty senior fellow https://millercenter.org/news-events/events/ai-national-security-and-democratic-accountability
