A former top Pentagon spokesperson said in an opinion piece published Sunday that the Department of Defense is in “disarray” under Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
“It’s been a month of total chaos at the Pentagon. From leaks of sensitive operational plans to mass firings, the dysfunction is now a major distraction for the president — who deserves better from his senior leadership,” John Ullyot, who served as the acting assistant to Hegseth for public affairs before resigning last week, wrote in the Politico Magazine piece.
“President Donald Trump has a strong record of holding his top officials to account. Given that, it’s hard to see Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth remaining in his role for much longer,” Ullyot continued.
The Defense Department has faced scrutiny in recent weeks over officials’ sharing of sensitive information and several high-profile firings.
In the last week, three top Pentagon officials were suspended and later fired.
Their dismissals came during an investigation into leaks in the department. The three fired Pentagon officials — Dan Caldwell, Colin Carroll and Darin Selnick — said in a joint statement posted on the social platform X on Saturday that they were “incredibly disappointed by the manner in which our service at the Department of Defense ended.” The group also wrote that they “understand the importance of information security and worked every day to protect it” and claimed that “unnamed Pentagon officials have slandered our character with baseless attacks on our way out the door.”
Ullyot similarly alleged in his Sunday opinion piece that “Defense Department officials working for Hegseth tried to smear the aides anonymously to reporters, claiming they were fired for leaking sensitive information as part of an investigation ordered earlier this month.”
“Hegseth is now presiding over a strange and baffling purge that will leave him without his two closest advisers of over a decade — Caldwell and Selnick — and without chiefs of staff for him and his deputy,” Ullyot wrote, mentioning two of the fired Pentagon officials. “More firings may be coming, according to rumors in the building.”
“In short, the building is in disarray under Hegseth’s leadership,” the former top Pentagon spokesperson said. “Fortunately, I was not a victim of this purge of his senior leadership. Like Caldwell and Selnick, I am a longtime backer of the secretary. In December, when his Senate confirmation was in jeopardy, I wrote an opinion piece arguing strongly that he was the best man to shake things up at a Pentagon in need of serious reform.”
The Hill has reached out to the Pentagon for comment.
