Back when Pete Hegseth was a Fox News host and Donald Trump was a seemingly long-shot presidential candidate, Hegseth warned of Trump’s rhetoric about the military not following the law.
The resurfaced comments, first reported on by CNN’s KFile, come as the Trump administration is facing scrutiny over strikes on alleged drug-carrying boats that have killed dozens of people. Six Democrats also put out a controversial video in November telling members of the U.S. military they should not follow illegal orders, though they didn’t mention any specific incidents.
Hegseth, who by Trump’s executive order goes by the title U.S. secretary of war, is a former Army National Guard officer who went on to work at Fox News from 2014 until he was nominated by Trump for his current job. He has been highly critical of the Democrats who released the video, all of whom are former members of the military or the intelligence community, and he called them the “Seditious Six.”
Back in the 2016 election, Trump struck controversy and even criticism from Hegseth when he indicated the military would follow his orders, even on illegal activities like torture. Here is what to know:More: Trump says Venezuela sends US lethal drugs, but data tells different story
Hegseth: ‘Donald Trump is oftentimes about Donald Trump’
In the 2016 Republican primaries, Trump said he supported waterboarding and that the military would carry out his orders. Multiple international organizations consider waterboarding torture and, therefore, illegal, according to NPR.
“If I say do it, they’re gonna do it,” he said. “That’s what leadership is all about.”
Trump received a great deal of pushback on his position and later walked back his position, saying he would not ask the military to disobey the law. Hegseth discussed Trump’s remarks on Megyn Kelly’s show on Fox News the following day, as shown in video archives.
“It’s typical Trump, all bluster, very little substance. He talked a tough game,” Hegseth said. “He’s an armchair tough guy.”
Hegseth said it was unlikely Trump would be able to change international laws on war crimes, but a potential commander-in-chief saying he supports torture and killing terrorists’ families is still dangerous.
“What happens when people follow those orders, or don’t follow them? It’s not clear that Donald Trump will have their back,” Hegseth said. “Donald Trump is oftentimes about Donald Trump. And so you can’t; if you’re not changing the law and you’re just saying it, you create even more ambiguity.”
An April 2016 clip of Hegseth at a speaking engagement was also shared widely on X. In it, he says, “the miliary said it won’t follow unlawful orders from their commander in chief.”
Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colorado, who was featured in the controversial video, shared it with the caption, “What changed, Pete? Our Secretary of Defense is an unqualified and unserious person.”
Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson said the video by the Democrats was “aimed at sowing distrust and chaos in our Armed Forces.”
“As Secretary Hegseth said recently and as a private citizen prior to holding office, the military already has clear procedures for handling unlawful orders,” Wilson said. “The orders being given to our military under President Trump are lawful.”
Hegseth under scrutiny over boat strikes
The Trump administration has been under scrutiny for strikes on alleged drug boats that have killed more than 80 people. They say the strikes are to stop drugs from Venezuela, where Trump has also signaled land strikes could be imminent. In one instance at the center of the current controversy, a follow-up strike killed two survivors clinging to the wreckage.
Hegseth has said he supported the second strike but did not order it himself, denouncing an earlier Washington Post report that he gave a directive to “kill them all.”
“As President Trump always has our back, we always have the back of our commanders who are making decisions in difficult situations, and we do in this case and all these strikes,” Hegseth said on Dec. 2. Trump also signaled support for Hegseth at the meeting.
Trump initially said he had no problem releasing the video of the second strike, but on Dec. 8, Trump denied having endorsed the release of the video and said it would be up to Hegseth.
The Trump administration has said it would open an investigation into the congressional Democrats who said the military can and must refuse illegal orders.
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