Edhat Staff
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth came under intense scrutiny during a fiery House Armed Services Committee hearing on Thursday, as Rep. Salud Carbajal (D-Calif.) demanded his resignation.
Carbajal accused Hegseth of compromising national security, politicizing military service, and exhibiting repeated misconduct, calling him “an embarrassment to this country.”
The controversy centers on allegations that Hegseth shared classified information about the timing of a U.S. airstrike on Houthi militant targets in March via unsecure Signal group chats on his personal phone. Among the recipients were reportedly The Atlantic Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg, Hegseth’s wife, brother, and personal attorney. Though Hegseth has denied sharing classified material, The Atlantic published the messages to the public and the Pentagon’s Inspector General has launched an investigation into possible violations of security protocols and federal record-keeping laws.
“You broke the law in sharing classified information and in doing so, endangered the lives of our service members that you are responsible for,” Carbajal said during the hearing. “Your inability to hold yourself accountable makes you incapable to lead. This alone makes you unfit to be the Secretary of Defense.”
Hegseth previously defended his actions, telling reporters, “Nobody’s texting war plans, and that’s all I have to say about that. There’s no units, no locations, no routes, no flight paths, no sources, no methods, no classified information.” However, the evidence provided by The Atlantic showed otherwise and fallout from the incident has reportedly led to low morale within the Pentagon, senior staff resignations, and concerns about his leadership.
During Thursday’s hearing, Carbajal broadened his attack, questioning Hegseth’s leadership through several contentious episodes, including his decision to deploy U.S. Marines to Los Angeles during anti-ICE protests and his handling of the war in Ukraine. He also pressed Hegseth on whether loyalty to President Donald Trump was a prerequisite for serving in the Department of Defense.
“Do you think political allegiance to Trump is a requirement for serving our nation, either in uniform or a civilian in the department?” Carbajal asked.
Hegseth attempted to sidestep the question, responding, “Congressman, you know what a silly question that is.” When pressed further, he added, “We all support and defend the Constitution of the United States—” before Carbajal interrupted: “You know what? I’m not going to waste my time anymore. You’re not worthy of my attention or my questions. You’re an embarrassment to this country. You’re unfit to lead. And there’s been bipartisan members of Congress that have called for your resignation. You should just get the hell out and let somebody competently lead this department.”
The heated exchange prompted an off-camera voice to say, “Mr. Chairman, do we not have any decorum in here?” Committee Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala.) intervened, calling for order. Carbajal later posted the video of the moment on social media, adding a punching fist emoji, an American flag emoji, and a fire emoji.
— Rep. Salud Carbajal (@RepCarbajal) June 12, 2025
Bipartisan Backlash Intensifies
Criticism of Hegseth’s leadership continues to build on Capitol Hill, with lawmakers from both parties expressing alarm over the mishandling of sensitive information and allegations of political favoritism within the military.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta have joined the calls for accountability, with Panetta describing the Signal incident as “one of the most serious breaches of trust I’ve seen in the modern Pentagon.”
Hegseth’s approval of the deployment of U.S. Marines to Los Angeles during anti-ICE protests has also faced intense scrutiny. The move rekindled memories of the last time Marines were deployed to an American city, during the 1992 Los Angeles riots following the acquittal of police officers who were seen on camera beating Rodney King. Unlike President George H.W. Bush, who invoked the Insurrection Act to authorize such action, Trump did not invoke the act, raising questions about the legality of this decision.
Further criticism stems from a rally held by President Trump at Fort Bragg, where uniformed soldiers cheered as the president took aim at political opponents. Observers—including some former military legal officials—argued this violated regulations against political activity by service members in uniform. The Army acknowledged concerns and pledged to review the presence of MAGA merchandise vendors at the event.
Tough Questions and Investigations Ahead
The Pentagon’s Inspector General continues to investigate whether Hegseth violated national security protocols or deleted messages that could constitute a breach of federal record-keeping laws.
Meanwhile, Carbajal’s pointed remarks during the hearing have emerged as one of the most forceful congressional condemnations of Hegseth’s tenure.
“You’re an embarrassment to this country,” Carbajal said bluntly. “You’re unfit to lead.”
As scrutiny grows, Hegseth’s ability to navigate the mounting criticism—and the bipartisan calls for his resignation—remains to be seen.
Speaking of Mr. Carbajal, we just saw him walking along Cabrillo as we left the protest. My wife and I rolled down our windows and waved and said “thank you!” True story, just happened. He waved back and smiled.
He’s a greater person than any of you MAGAts will ever be.
Thank you again, Salud!
Someone told me Salud drove past the protest, with his head sticking out the car window. I missed seeing him. The “No Kings” protest was AMAZING. I heard the line of people (about four deep, where I was) went from Milpas to SBCC. Not to exaggerate, but I swear there were thousands upon thousands of protestors. The astonishing amount of drivers honking horns, people chanting. The homemade signs were stunningly creative. The vibe was high energy happiness. Santa Barbara, I am so proud of you.
It look like a group of zombies. I think people were honking the horn just to let the zombies know not to walk in the street
You don’t actually think that, but this is the sort of casual lying that we can expect from low IQ right wingers.
Attack me and you don’t even know me , that’s one of the things that shipwrecked your group, I don’t say party( because your groups only party is a self pity party like yesterday). You can read everything ? Then what does my middle finger extended in air towards you mean? It’s giving you the benefit of the doubt of have an I.Q. Of a big 1 yes 1
Giz is weird, ungrammatical, deluded, and obviously craves attention.
Thanks for confirming my evaluation.
Salud was walking along length of the street, mingling with those attending, not merely driving past. Nothing showy, just solid support for his constituents.
It was really awesome down there. I think it was WAY more than the organizers anticipated. It felt good to see so many members of our community standing against the cruelty, evil and lawlessness of the Trump administration.
The great thing was there was really very minimal police presence and at least during the 2.5 hours I was there and from the wharf to the carousel, there was not a single Trump moron trying to stir things up. All positive, everyone out waving and cheering against that wretched man.
It was a truly celebratory vibe, even better than Solstice. It was so cool to be in solidarity with our immigrant neighbors and support them in this time when the fascist wolves are at their doorstep. Great humor in the signage and big smiles on the faces. The only police I saw were driving by and waving to people, who waved back with their whole hand. The crowd was as diverse as it gets here.
I was thinking just that – it looked like Solstice. And yeah – cops are cool. They aren’t about to hassle peaceful protests. Shouldn’t be any surprise there Kirk.
I didn’t see a single pro-Trump flag until way, way after the protest was over. And then it was just one truck full of losers, repeatedly trolling the few remaining protesters at the dolphin statue.
Wretched is complementing Biden
Giz is weird, can’t post cogently in English, and craves attention.
???
This makes no sense. Also, did you mean “complimenting”?
It takes a little practice to comprehend these sub-room-temperature IQ right wingers … there’s a clump of neurons that triggers whenever something negative is said about Trump that drives them to substitute Biden, whether it makes sense in context or not. And they think that is being clever and owning the libs when of course it actually just makes them look as stupid as they are.
Oh no. Salud, you had the spotlight, but that was weak. A lost the perfect chance to bowl over Hegseth. From the SB Independent: “Carbajal told Hegseth he was “unfit to lead” and “should just get the hell out and let somebody competently lead this department.” This is similar to when Obama told Putin to “cut it out” on Russia hacking.
And which Republicans have made a stronger rebuke? None.
Here are the only republicans who made any kind of comment about the Signal leak, all of which is much tamer than Carbajal. Any criticism for these GOP cowards and the rest that remained silent, Bees?
Rep. Don Bacon (R-Neb.): A retired Air Force brigadier general, Rep. Bacon was the first Republican to publicly call for Hegseth’s removal, stating concerns about his lack of experience and the “totally unacceptable” nature of sharing operational details in such a manner. He emphasized the potential danger to service members and the erosion of trust in leadership caused by the leak. Bacon also noted that if the reports of a second Signal chat with family members about Houthi missions were true, it would be “totally unacceptable”.
Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.): The Senate majority leader acknowledged that “errors in
judgment” were made by officials involved in the Signal chat.
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.): Called the chat “a mistake” but defended Hegseth.
Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.): Expressed support for Hegseth, praising his work as Secretary of Defense and criticizing those trying to remove him.
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.): Also voiced support for Hegseth, accusing the “D.C. foreign policy establishment” of being desperate and attempting to oust him.
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.): Defended Hegseth at a town hall, stating he did not violate the Espionage Act by sharing operational details in the Signal chat.
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.): The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee stated that his committee would investigate the leak and its implications. No word on this.
– President Trump publicly downplayed the controversy surrounding Hegseth, and defended him against calls for his removal.
STFU
I think you mean when Trump texted to Putin: “Vladamir…stop.” But this is not similar to either one. A Congressman is calling out an administration official – saying out loud what everyone knows but Republicans stick their collective heads in the sand. Cults are peculiar that way – if the Grand Poobah says it, it must be true. “Salud” to Salud for laying it out. Somebody had to!
I had to look this one up:
“During a news conference in December 2016, President Obama stated that he had told Russian President Vladimir Putin to “cut it out” regarding the hacking of the Democratic National Committee and the US election process, according to PBS.” (source: wikipedia)
Yes, he did (common knowledge). But the OP suggested that the statement was weak and showed lack of leadership. Trump’s text was a more recent example of presidential weakness, so I assumed the poster meant to refer to something he could actually remember, and something relevant to current events. The Obama reference was obscure and, well, weak.
Nobody’s weaker than Bendy Knees, at least as far as having any credibility.
The article is mostly about Carbajal. The video shows the interaction (“grilling”) between Carbajal and Hegseth. My comment was about that interaction. As a side note, I don’t believe Hegseth will or should be in the Trump administration for much longer.
So you meant to say, “Great start Salud but we need more from our leaders to call out the injustices!” but instead you typed a bunch of garbage admonishing Carbajal? Got it.
@BeesKnees, I assume you haven’t watched many congressional hearings. As a rule, they’re quite tepid, given Congress’ hearing rules and the fact that almost all committee leaders are now GOP/MAGA. Even when someone like Elizabeth Warren or AOC have the mic. Salud’s questioning of Hegseth stands out as one of the most assertive and no-nonsense questionings of a Trump gaslighter I’ve seen.
And as someone who’s held a security clearance, it’s plainly clear to me that the rules aren’t being applied equally. Hegseth and Trump should be in jail for their blatant violations of our national security protocols. Everyone I know with a clearance agrees.
Semper Fi, Congressman Carbajal!
What did he actually do in the Marine Corps? Was he a reserve?
What did you do in school? Sleep?
So yes Salud was a reserve member or was it R.O.T.C.?
Yes he was in the Reserves, having actively chosen to serve our country, and mobilized to active duty during Desert Storm. What have you actually done to serve our country?
He DID NOT get deployed to Desert Storm. He never left the States.
So what? Do you think his postings were his decision?!
Learn to read … no one said he left the U.S.
Gizzy has little knowledge about how the military works, along with many other things.
Longer version of Carbajal questioning Hegseth, not on X:
Carbajal Lights Into Hegseth Tells Him To His Face That He’s An ‘Embarrassment’
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dl4eCWYSGQQ
This is the same one I posted Friday, here: https://www.edhat.com/news/sb-organizers-talk-politics-policies-and-plans-for-saturdays-big-anti-trump-protest/
Carbajal is an embarrassment. He struggled to read the comments his staff wrote for him. He was rude and disrespectful. Should be censured for his complete lack of decorum. He’s a puppet politician that does nothing good for our community.
Let me guess: you wrote your comment based on Fox News’ coverage. It’s obvious that you have not seen nor heard about the episode itself. (You shouldn’t use the same wording as the Fox commentators – it gives you away.)
Like all right wingers nearly all the time, you are lying.
How many sock puppet monikers do you have, RW?
Current puppet for RW: Maybe not for your community, but for us here in Santa Barbara, he does a lot of good. And, if you bother to think about it, defending our Constitution is also good for your pitiful community ravaged by con policies.
Oh my gosh, Sen. Slotkin kicking some butt! lol!
Times 6/18: “Ms. Slotkin raised the issue in even starker terms, asking the defense secretary whether he had given troops orders “to shoot at unarmed protesters in any way?”
Mr. Hegseth laughed.
Ms. Slotkin reminded him that the former Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper wrote in his memoir that Mr. Trump had asked during racial justice demonstrations in 2020 why the military could not “just shoot” protesters in Washington in the legs.
“He had more guts and balls than you because he said, I am not going to send in the uniformed military to do something that I know in my gut is not right,” Ms. Slotkin chided the defense secretary. ” 😲 😂
“I’d be careful what you read in books,” Mr. Hegseth warned, “except for the Bible.”
“Oh God,” an exasperated Ms. Slotkin replied.”
video:
https://www.youtube.com/live/ljVYgfAPElc
More proof that Hegseth is a complete idiot.