Tag Archives: Pete Hegseth

ABC 7 KABC: Trump deploys 2,000 National Guard members after Los Angeles immigration protests

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ICE vowed to continue making arrests and enforce immigration laws.

The Trump administration is deploying the California National Guard in response to protests in Los Angeles over immigration enforcement operations that have resulted in some clashes between demonstrators and authorities, the White House said in a statement.

President Donald Trump signed a memorandum “deploying 2,000 National Guardsmen to address the lawlessness” in California as demonstrations opposing Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations continue in the state, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement Saturday.

“In the wake of this violence, California’s feckless Democrat leaders have completely abdicated their responsibility to protect their citizens,” Leavitt said. “That is why President Trump has signed a Presidential Memorandum deploying 2,000 National Guardsmen to address the lawlessness that has been allowed to fester,” Leavitt said.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a post on X that the Defense Department is “mobilizing the National Guard IMMEDIATELY to support federal law enforcement in Los Angeles. And, if violence continues, active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized – they are on high alert.”

Earlier, California Gov. Gavin Newsom said the federal government was moving to “take over the California National Guard,” calling the move “purposefully inflammatory” and saying it will “only escalate tensions.”

Newsom said local California authorities don’t need the help.

“LA authorities are able to access law enforcement assistance at a moment’s notice,” he said. “We are in close coordination with the city and county, and there is currently no unmet need.”

Trump deploys 2,000 National Guard members after Los Angeles immigration protests

https://abc7.com/post/protests-erupt-immigration-customs-enforcement-raids-los-angeles-california/16690197

New York Times: Trump Is Calling Up National Guard Troops Under a Rarely Used Law

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President Trump bypassed the authority of Gov. Gavin Newsom to call up 2,000 National Guard troops to quell immigration protests.

President Trump took extraordinary action on Saturday by calling up 2,000 National Guard troops to quell immigration protests in California, making rare use of federal powers and bypassing the authority of the state’s governor, Gavin Newsom.

It is the first time since 1965 that a president has activated a state’s National Guard force without a request from that state’s governor, according to Elizabeth Goitein, senior director of the Liberty and National Security Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, an independent law and policy organization. The last time was when President Lyndon B. Johnson sent troops to Alabama to protect civil rights demonstrators in 1965, she said.

Mr. Newsom, a Democrat, immediately rebuked the president’s action. “That move is purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions,” Mr. Newsom said, adding that “this is the wrong mission and will erode public trust.”

Governors almost always control the deployment of National Guard troops in their states. But the directive signed by Mr. Trump cites “10 U.S.C. 12406,” referring to a specific provision within Title 10 of the U.S. Code on Armed Services. Part of that provision allows the federal deployment of National Guard forces if “there is a rebellion or danger of a rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States.”

It also states that the president may call into federal service “members and units of the National Guard of any State in such numbers as he considers necessary to repel the invasion, suppress the rebellion, or execute those laws.”

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Although some demonstrations have been unruly, local authorities in Los Angeles County did not indicate during the day that they needed federal assistance.

Trump Is Calling Up National Guard Troops Under a Rarely Used Law

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/07/us/trump-national-guard-deploy-rare.html

Deadline: Trump Deploys 2,000 Troops To L.A. As Backlash & Protests To ICE Raids Surge; POTUS Action “Purposefully Inflammatory,” Newsom Warns

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Reeling from widespread harsh ICE raids and responding protests and resistance over the past 24 hours, Los Angeles has become a powder keg with Donald Trump deploying 2,000 California National Guard troops over the objection of Governor Gavin Newsom and other SoCal leaders.

As rock-throwing and bellowing Angelenos sought to stop undocumented individuals being targeted by masked and heavily armored federal agents from being dragged away from a Home Depot in Paramount, Calif. and LA’s Westlake neighborhood on Saturday, Trump took to social media to announce a de facto takeover of the City of Angels. “If Governor Gavin Newscum, of California, and Mayor Karen Bass, of Los Angeles, can’t do their jobs, which everyone knows they can’t, then the Federal Government will step in and solve the problem, RIOTS & LOOTERS, the way it should be solved!!!” he said (caps’ Trump).

Declaring “to the extent that protests or acts of violence directly inhibit the execution of the laws, they constitute a form of rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States” in a memorandum today, Trump says the federalized troops’ “duration of duty shall be for 60 days or at the discretion of the Secretary of Defense.”

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Raising the stakes even more, and seeming to disregard federal law, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth proclaimed that “if violence continues, active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized — they are on high alert.”

Trump Deploys 2,000 Troops To L.A. As Backlash & Protests To ICE Raids Surge; POTUS Action “Purposefully Inflammatory,” Newsom Warns
LA is feeling the heavy hand of the White House tonight as 1000s of troops are deployed in response to protests & resistance to widespread ICE Raids.

https://deadline.com/2025/06/trump-national-guard-los-angeles-ice-raids-newsom-1236426811

New York Post: Trump admin diverted 20,000 anti-drone missiles it promised to Ukraine and sent them to US troops, Zelensky says

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the Trump administration diverted 20,000 anti-drone missiles originally meant for Kyiv to American forces in the Middle East.

Zelensky revealed Sunday that he had secured a deal for the missiles under the Biden administration to counterattack Moscow’s deadly, Iranian-designed Shahed drones, which have been at the center of Russia’s mass bombardment campaign.

“We have big problems with Shaheds,” Zelensky told ABC News’ “This Week.” “We counted on this project — 20,000 missiles. Anti-Shahed missiles. It was not expensive, but it’s a special technology.”

The diversion of the weapons was first reported by the Wall Street Journal last week, with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly issuing an “urgent” call to redirect the weapons on June 4 away from Ukraine.

The drunk O-3 strickes again!

Trump admin diverted 20,000 anti-drone missiles it promised to Ukraine and sent them to US troops, Zelensky says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed that the Trump administration diverted 20,000 anti-drone missiles originally meant for Kyiv to American forces in the Middle East.

https://nypost.com/2025/06/08/world-news/trump-diverted-20000-anti-drone-missiles-from-ukraine-to-us-troops-zelensky

Daily Beast: Pentagon Reporter Calls Out Hegseth on Fox News Over Media Crackdown: ‘He’s Embarrassed’

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A veteran Pentagon correspondent used a Fox News appearance to savage Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for attempting to restrict media access at his department.

Barbara Starr, who spent more than 20 years as CNN’s Pentagon correspondent, claimed Hegseth is ending journalists’ access to certain areas at the Pentagon because he’s “embarrassed” by the chaos engulfing his time in the Trump administration.

“Hegseth is embarrassed,” Starr said on Fox’s MediaBuzz Sunday. “He’s embarrassed by this—so much exposure to information, classified by all accounts, that he posted on Signal about that air attack in Yemen. He’s embarrassed that information came out that he was going to meet with Elon Musk and brief him on China.”

Pentagon Reporter Calls Out Hegseth on Fox News Over Media Crackdown: ‘He’s Embarrassed’
Barbara Starr says the defense secretary should be more focused on other areas other than his “PR structure.”

https://www.thedailybeast.com/pentagon-reporter-barbara-starr-calls-out-hegseth-on-fox-news-over-media-crackdown-hes-embarrassed

Atlanta Black Star News: ‘This Is So Targeted and Intentional’: New U.S. Military Grooming Policy Is ‘Racist,’ Singles Out Black Servicemembers, Critics Say

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Several branches of the United States military have changed their policies governing pseudofolliculitis barbae, or PFB, a painful skin condition more commonly known as razor bumps or ingrown hairs, which affects more Black men than any other group.

Now critics accuse the military of targeting Black men with the condition, even as past studies have shown those with medical waivers allowing them to have short beards were already lagging behind in promotions compared to their non-waivered counterparts.

In March, the U.S. Marine Corps issued new guidance on its shaving waivers that could result in the expulsion of service members with a recurring condition of PFB. The Air Force and Space Force also updated their guidance on grooming waivers in January.

Pete Hegseth’s military: Women and minorities need no apply. Screw ya!

‘This Is So Targeted and Intentional’: New U.S. Military Grooming Policy Is ‘Racist,’ Singles Out Black Servicemembers, Critics Say
Several branches of the United States military have changed their policies governing pseudofolliculitis barbae, or PFB, a painful skin condition more
‘This Is So Targeted and Intentional’: New U.S. Military Grooming Policy Is ‘Racist,’ Singles Out Black Servicemembers, Critics Say

Daily Beast: Pentagon Shuts Down Musk’s ‘What Did You Do Last Week’ Emails

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As the DOGE boss departs, staff have been told to come up with their ideas to cut waste and boost efficiency.

The Pentagon has ended Elon Musk’s directive for federal workers to provide a list of five of their accomplishments every week as it distances itself from one of DOGE’s most contentious policies.

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Democrat Congressman Joe Courtney, a ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, said it was about time the department scrapped the policy.

“Good riddance,” he told the Daily Beast.

“For months, dedicated Defense Department civilians received Elon Musk’s insulting ‘five things’ emails. Many of these people served in the military, are highly trained and experienced, and are doing this job because they actually care about the mission.

“And yet, they were being constantly pummeled with these communications from DOGE questioning their dedication and the value of their work.”

Pentagon Shuts Down Musk’s ‘What Did You Do Last Week’ Emails
As the DOGE boss departs, staff have been told to come up with their ideas to cut waste and boost efficiency.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/pentagon-shuts-down-musks-what-did-you-do-last-week-emails

Status: Hegseth’s Safe Space

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As backlash brewed over new restrictions on press access, the Pentagon made a second, quieter move—one that sent another troubling signal about how far it’s willing to go to create a safe space for Pete Hegseth.

On Friday afternoon, just before the holiday weekend was set to begin, word began to spread among Pentagon reporters: new, even more restrictive press limitations were imminent. Shortly after, the Pentagon Press Association was informed just how sweeping they would be. Pete Hegseth, the embattled Secretary of Defense, announced he would revoke journalists’ long-held ability to navigate the Pentagon’s unclassified hallways freely, cutting off access that has been permitted across Republican and Democratic administrations for decades.

Hegseth cloaked the decision in the language of national security. In a memo that he publicized via tweet, Hegseth claimed the restrictions were necessary to safeguard “sensitive information—the unauthorized disclosure of which could put the lives of U.S. Service members in danger.” But to many reporters, the rationale felt hollow—especially coming from a figure at the center of Signalgate, the scandal involving Hegseth’s own use of an insecure messaging app to conduct sensitive military business. The notion that hallway access for credentialed reporters posed more of a security threat than his own sloppy use of an encrypted messaging app struck many as absurd, to say the least.

Hegseth’s Safe Space

https://www.status.news/p/pete-hegseth-pentagon-press-access

Independent: Inside Pete Hegseth’s chaotic inner circle as report says defense secretary’s team in ‘cold war’

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Questions raised over long-term viability of embattled head of Pentagon as two senior advisers said to be at loggerheads

The Pentagon is reportedly in the grip of a new Cold War, and it has nothing to do with Russia.

A rift between two senior advisers to Pete Hegseth has led to a wider schism at the department, fueling speculation about the long-term prospects of the embattled defense secretary as a member of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet, according to reporting by The Washington Post.

Numerous people familiar with the matter told the paper that claims of departmental unity are belied by continued dysfunction behind the scenes, stemming from personality conflicts, lack of experience, ongoing vacancies in important roles, and paranoia over what political crisis could erupt next.

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Sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing retribution, described the most combustible relationship as that between two Hegseth aides, Eric Geressy and Ricky Buria.

They claim that Geressy, a retired soldier whom Hegseth has credited with mentoring him during their service in Iraq, has expressed ongoing concerns that Buria, until recently a military assistant to the defense secretary and now his acting chief of staff, has attempted to marginalize colleagues to enhance his own standing within the Trump administration.

Amidst the fallout from the Signalgate scandal in March, tensions between the two are said to have boiled over when Geressy found out he was excluded from meetings during a trip across the Pacific by Hegseth and blamed Buria.

Geressy also voiced concern about how many administration officials were using Signal and told staffers that the White House had a dim view of Buria, seeing him as self-important.

…

Click on the link below to read the entire article:

Inside Pete Hegseth’s chaotic inner circle as defense secretary’s team in ‘cold war’
Questions raised over long-term viability of embattled head of Pentagon as two senior advisers said to be at loggerheads

https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/hegseth-pentagon-chaos-defense-trump-b2758627.html

Raw Story: Hegseth leak probe in chaos after White House told of ‘illegal wiretap’: report

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The White House has reportedly lost confidence in Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s leak investigation after officials were told that an illegal wiretap was used in the probe.

The Guardian reported on Tuesday that officials had notified Vice President JD Vance after the Defense Department officials claimed they employed an “illegal warrantless National Security Agency (NSA) wiretap” to out senior Hegseth adviser Dan Caldwell, who was fired last month with two other aides.

Of course the White House absolved their boy Hegseth:

White House officials found the wiretap claim to be untrue “and complained that they were being fed dubious information by Hegseth’s personal lawyer, Tim Parlatore, who had been tasked with overseeing the investigation,” the report noted.

But now:

“Trump advisers tracking the investigation have privately suggested they no longer have any idea about who or what to believe,” the report said.

Hegseth leak probe in chaos after White House told of ‘illegal wiretap’: report

https://www.rawstory.com/pete-hegseth-leak-investigation