Tag Archives: Pete Hegseth

ABC: Pentagon pulling 2,000 National Guard from ICE duty in LA

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The U.S. military presence in Los Angeles is being reduced by almost half as the Pentagon confirms that 2,000 California National Guard members are being withdrawn from the mission to protect federal buildings and personnel that followed protests of Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations in Los Angeles.

“Thanks to our troops who stepped up to answer the call, the lawlessness in Los Angeles is subsiding. As such, the Secretary has ordered the release of 2,000 California National Guardsmen (79th [Infantry Brigade Combat Team]) from the federal protection mission,” Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement provided to ABC News.

Nearly 4,700 personnel had been provided to that mission with 700 of them being active-duty Marines and the remaining 4,000 coming from the California National Guard.

The initial deployment of 2,000 California National Guard members to Los Angeles was announced on June 7.

At the time, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on social media that he was prepared to send active-duty Marines “if violence continues.” Two days later, U.S. Northern Command announced that 700 Marines from Twentynine Palms in California were being deployed to Los Angeles.

An additional 2,000 National Guard members were later mobilized for the mission in Los Angeles.

Some of the Guard members later received specific training to provide perimeter security during ICE operations and were not carrying out law enforcement duties. However, they were authorized to temporarily detain individuals if needed and then quickly turn them over to law enforcement personnel.

LOL! Things were peaceful until King Donald butted in unnecessarily with the military.

Pentagon pulling 2,000 National Guard deployed to LA amid ICE protests
Pentagon confirms that 2,000 California National Guard members are being withdrawn from the mission to protect federal buildings and personnel that followed ICE protests.

https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/pentagon-pulling-half-guard-members-deployed-la-support/story?id=123784553

Miami Herald: Here’s Hegseth’s Response to ‘Our Boys’ Fact Check

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When asked about the fact check and his language, Hegseth responded, “I say our boys and bombers as a common phrase, I’ll keep saying things like that, whether they’re men or women. Very proud of that female pilot, just like I’m very proud of those male pilots and I don’t care if it’s a male or a female in that cockpit and the American people don’t care. But it’s the obsession with race and gender in this department that’s changed priorities and we don’t do that anymore. We don’t play your little games.”

So says the washed out O-3 turned Fox talk show host who can never give a straight answer to a question.

Here’s Hegseth’s Response to ‘Our Boys’ Fact Check
More for You

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/here-s-hegseth-s-response-to-our-boys-fact-check/ss-AA1HI6k7

Knewz: Angelenos Left to Clean Up City After ICE Protests

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Residents of Los Angeles are left to clean up the streets after the mayhem caused by the anti-ICE protests that rocked the city. Knewz.com has learned that Los Angeles erupted with protests after the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) carried out large-scale raids across the city and surrounding suburbs and reportedly arrested at least 44 undocumented individuals, many of whom were reportedly long-term residents without criminal records. 

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Federal officers in tactical gear fired tear gas and other nonlethal weapons in Compton and Paramount on Saturday, June 7, with protesters responding by starting a series of small fires that left black char on the streets.

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Residents of Los Angeles were left to clean the streets littered with tear gas pellets and other charred and broken detritus left after the altercation between protesters and the National Guard. 

Angelenos Left to Clean Up City After ICE Protests
Residents of Los Angeles are left to clean up the streets after the mayhem caused by the anti-ICE protests that rocked the city.

https://knewz.com/angelenos-left-to-clean-up-city-after-ice-protests

MSNBC: Pete Hegseth’s unhinged press conference shows how the Trump administration views the media’s job

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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was in full crybully mode during a Thursday news conference that, according to a Truth Social post from President Donald Trump, was intended “to fight for the Dignity of our Great American Pilots” and provide “interesting and irrefutable” evidence of the “LEGENDARY” success of last week’s unilateral U.S. attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

But Hegseth didn’t provide definitive evidence of the actual extent of the damage inflicted on those facilities by 30,000-pound bunker-busting bombs — or clarity on whether Iran pre-emptively moved its stash of weapons-grade uranium. Instead, the secretary complained that certain media outlets failed to act as unquestioning cheerleaders of a stunning act of aggression against a longtime U.S. adversary — an attack that the president had immediately declared an unequivocal success.

The 42-minute press conference was a useful distillation of the Trump administration’s posture vis-à-vis news coverage: playing the pure-as-driven-snow victim while lashing out in thuggish fashion.

Hegseth insisted the attack was successful in “decimating — choose your word — obliterating, destroying Iran’s nuclear capabilities.” He blasted the press for reporting on a leaked preliminary intelligence assessment by the Pentagon’s Defense Intelligence Agency, which asserted that the U.S. attack may have only set back Iran’s nuclear program by months.

Pete Hegseth’s unhinged press conference shows how the Trump administration views the media’s job
Hegseth threw a tantrum and Trump threatened lawsuits — because news outlets reported on a government intelligence report on Iran’s nuclear sites.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/pete-hegseth-s-unhinged-press-conference-shows-how-the-trump-administration-views-the-media-s-job/ar-AA1HCXQe

CNN: US did not use bunker-buster bombs on one of Iran’s nuclear sites, top general tells lawmakers, citing depth of the target

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The US military did not use bunker-buster bombs on one of Iran’s largest nuclear sites last weekend because the site is so deep that the bombs likely would not have been effective, the US’ top general told senators during a briefing on Thursday.

The comment by Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Dan Caine, which was described by three people who heard his remarks and a fourth who was briefed on them, is the first known explanation given for why the US military did not use the Massive Ordnance Penetrator bomb against the Isfahan site in central Iran. US officials believe Isfahan’s underground structures house nearly 60% of Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile, which Iran would need in order to ever produce a nuclear weapon.

US B2 bombers dropped over a dozen bunker-buster bombs on Iran’s Fordow and Natanz nuclear sites. But Isfahan was only struck by Tomahawk missiles launched from a US submarine.

So what we heard from King Donald was largely lies and hot air — par for the course.

US’ top general tells lawmakers | CNN Politics
The US military did not use bunker-buster bombs on one of Iran’s largest nuclear sites last weekend because the site is so deep that the bombs likely would not have been effective, the US’ top general told senators during a briefing on Thursday.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/27/politics/bunker-buster-bomb-isfahan-iran

Alternet: Military officer slams ‘racially motivated’ policy that enables Army to kick out Black men

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The U.S. Army is now rolling out a new policy that disproportionately impacts Black soldiers, and one officer is questioning the motivations behind the announcement.

Military.com reported Friday that the Army is now planning to prohibit shaving waivers, requiring all soldiers to adhere to strict new grooming standards. Previously, soldiers who suffered from the skin condition pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB) were allowed to ask for a waiver to bypass requirements to stay clean-shaven, as PFB patients can often have painful bumps and scarring from the use of a razor.

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Under the new policy, which is slated to take effect in the coming weeks, Soldiers who request shaving waivers for more than 12 months over a two-year period could be kicked out of the Army.

According to the American Osteopathic College of Dermatology, up to 60% of Black men suffer from PFB. And Military.com reported that Black Americans make up roughly one in four new Army recruits over the past several years even though they make up just 14% of the U.S. population.

“Of course, this is racially motivated,” an unnamed senior noncommissioned officer told Military.com anonymously out of fear of retaliation. “There’s no tactical reason; you can look professional with facial hair.”

Hegseth & Trump are both racist bigots — two of a kind — so this comes as no surprise.

Military officer slams ‘racially motivated’ policy that enables Army to kick out Black men

https://www.alternet.org/military-trump-policy

Esquire: How U.S. Customs and Border Protection Accidentally Sent a JD Vance Meme into the Viral Stratosphere

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The altered photo of the vice president might’ve revealed his weird, sweaty soul better than Hillbilly Elegy ever could.

This week, a 21-year-old Norwegian tourist named Mads Mikkelsen was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at Newark Airport, and the most important part of the story is NOT that there’s another guy named Mads Mikkelsen. The most important part of the story is that Mikkelsen claims he was detained and eventually returned to Norway at least in part because of an image CBP agents found on his phone, which is this doctored photo of JD Vance.

Upon his return to Norway, Mikkelsen gave an interview to local newspaper Nordlys, saying that CBP agents threatened him with a $5,000 fine if he did not unlock his phone and allow them to scroll through his photos, and when they saw this hilarious and unsettling image, that was the last straw. The story spread far and wide, and CBP felt the need to address the situation on social media.

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Because the CBP chose to address the story publicly rather than let it blow over, the JD Vance meme has been on the front page of European newspapers and websites all week long, which is the dumbest and funniest and most obvious possible outcome. It is proof that people in power do not understand the Streisand Effect.

How U.S. Customs and Border Protection Accidentally Sent a JD Vance Meme into the Viral Stratosphere
The altered photo of the vice president might’ve revealed his weird, sweaty soul better than Hillbilly Elegy ever could.

https://www.esquire.com/news-politics/a65223992/us-customs-and-border-protection-jd-vance-meme

Huffington Post: Donald Trump Makes Eye-Rolling New Title Suggestion For Pete Hegseth

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The president’s throwback title idea went awry.

Donald Trump on Wednesday raised eyebrows with a controversial suggestion to rename the secretary of defense position as secretary of war.

Speaking at a NATO meeting in The Netherlands, Trump introduced Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth by saying:

“Secretary of state and secretary of war. Shall we say secretary… It used to be called secretary of war. Maybe for a couple of weeks we’ll call it that because we feel like warriors.”

He continued:

“It used to be called secretary of war, in fact if you look at the old building next to the White House, you can see where it used to be secretary of war. Then we became politically correct and they called it secretary of defense. I don’t know, maybe we’ll have to start thinking about changing it but we feel that way.”

Great warriors indeed! A draft dodger and an O-3 washout! 😀

Trump Makes Eye-Rolling New Title Suggestion For Pete Hegseth
The president’s throwback title idea went awry.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/donald-trump-pete-hegseth-title_n_685cf373e4b0f78c5737d4d1

Independent: Pete Hegseth holding Pentagon press conference to celebrate ‘very upset’ B-2 pilots involved in Iran raid

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President Donald Trump says defense secretary will speak up ‘for the dignity of our great American pilots’ after feud with media over extent of bomb damage continues

“Secretary of Defense (War!) Pete Hegseth, together with Military Representatives, will be holding a Major News Conference tomorrow morning at 8 A.M. EST at The Pentagon, in order to fight for the Dignity of our Great American Pilots,” the president wrote on Truth Social on Wednesday evening.

“These Patriots were very upset! After 36 hours of dangerously flying through Enemy Territory, they landed, they knew the Success was LEGENDARY, and then, two days later, they started reading Fake News by CNN and The Failing New York Times. They felt terribly!

“Fortunately for them and, as usual, solely for the purpose of demeaning PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP, the Fake News (Times and CNN) lied and totally misrepresented the Facts, none of which they had (because it was too soon, there were no Facts out there yet!). The News Conference will prove both interesting and irrefutable. Enjoy!”

That was the hype from Hegseth & his cronies. The mission really was a dud, one big ugly wasted effort, as multiple leaks have now confirmed.

Condolences to the pilots, perhaps next time you’ll have some competent leadership, or perhaps not …

Pete Hegseth holding Pentagon press conference to celebrate ‘very upset’ B-2 pilots
President Donald Trump says defense secretary will speak up ‘for the dignity of our great American pilots’ after feud with media over extent of bomb damage continues

https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/pete-hegseth-press-conference-trump-iran-b2777289.html

Guardian: Trump and Hegseth admit doubts about level of damage to Iranian nuclear sites

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President calls intelligence ‘inconclusive’, while defence secretary describes harm to facilities as ‘moderate to severe’

Donald Trump and the US defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, have admitted to some doubt over the scale of the damage inflicted on Iran’s nuclear sites by the US bombing at the weekend, after a leaked Pentagon assessment said the Iranian programme had been set back by only a few months.

“The intelligence was very inconclusive,” Trump told journalists at a Nato summit in The Hague, introducing an element of uncertainty for the first time after several days of emphatic declarations that the destruction had been total.

“The intelligence says we don’t know. It could’ve been very severe. That’s what the intelligence suggests.”

The president then appeared to revert to his claim that “it was very severe. There was obliteration”. Later in the day, he claimed that was the conclusion from “collected intelligence”, and that the Iranian programme had been set back “decades”.

Trump also likened the US use of massive bunker-buster bombs on the Fordow and Natanz uranium enrichment sites to the impact of the US nuclear weapons dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in the second world war, using the comparison specifically in reference to their impact in ending a conflict.

Over the course of the day, Trump’s claims became more far-reaching, even rejecting reports from the nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), that Iran’s 400kg stock of 60% enriched uranium could no longer be accounted for, and appeared to have been moved.

Despite all the huffing and puffing, the bombings were pretty much a flop.

Trump and Hegseth admit doubts about level of damage to Iranian nuclear sites
President calls intelligence ‘inconclusive’ while defence secretary describes harm to facilities as ‘moderate to severe’

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jun/25/trump-and-hegseth-admit-doubts-over-irans-nuclear-sites-damage-by-us-strikes