The White House is looking to replace Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, according to one U.S. official who spoke anonymously with NPR.
Hegseth is under fire for allegedly creating a Signal group chat with family members — including his wife, brother, and personal lawyer — detailing strikes on Houthi rebels in Yemen in March.
It also came to light in March that in another Signal chat, Hegseth shared U.S. military operations with a group of senior U.S. officials, which also included a journalist with The Atlantic.
Signal is a free, open-source messaging app that offers end-to-end encrypted texts, calls, video chats, and group messages. Earlier in April, Politico reported that top intelligence officials and lawmakers use the Signal app.
Critics, including Democratic lawmakers, are calling for Hegseth’s resignation, citing concerns over national security and the mishandling of classified information.
Hegseth responds at White House event
Hegseth responded to the media reports during Easter activities at the White House on Sunday, April 20.
“You know, what a big surprise that a bunch of leakers get fired, and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out from the same media that peddled the Russia hoax,” Hegseth said.
Pentagon launches investigation
The Pentagon has been investigating internal leaks, which led to the dismissal of senior officials Dan Caldwell and Darin Selnick, as well as the resignations of top Pentagon spokesperson John Ullyot and Hegseth’s chief of staff, Joe Kasper.
White House pushes back on report
In response to the NPR article, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt posted to X, saying:
“This NPR story is total fake news based on one anonymous source who clearly has no idea what they are talking about.
As the president said this morning, he stands strongly behind the secretary of defense.”
On Monday, President Trump told reporters: “Pete’s doing a great job. Everybody’s happy with him.”
