Raw Story: 'Unlike anything I've seen': Veteran Pentagon reporter stunned at level of 'infighting'

[Dennis Donovan]

Raw Story - 'Unlike anything I've seen': Veteran Pentagon reporter stunned at level of 'infighting'

Travis Gettys
April 21, 2025 8:18AM ET

A veteran Pentagon reporter can't recall a more chaotic environment within the upper echelons of U.S. military leadership as leaks spill out about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

The defense department's former chief spokesman John Ullyot Sunday warned that a month of "total chaos" had left Pentagon leadership "near collapse," and New York Times reporter Greg Jaffe told MSNBC's "Morning Joe" about his new article revealing that Hegseth had been involved in a second group chat to discuss confidential military operations with questionable individuals.

"The chat, as you noted, included his wife, his brother, his personal attorney, and most of his inner circle, which has been in a state of tumult these last couple of weeks," Jaffe said. "I think it's worth noting, it's a very inexperienced inner circle, and he's a very inexperienced secretary, so it's a group of people who hadn't been used to operating at this level of government, and I think that's the other kind of key point here.

"He doesn't have a lot of experience, and he's surrounded himself with people who also kind of lack experience."

/snip

[PCIntern]

1. I'm just shocked. I gotta sit down...

Who’d a thunk THIS? 🍷🧉🍹🍻🍺

[Lovie777]

2. And whiskey Pete is blaming Democrats.................

I guess to republicans that never gets old.

[bluesbassman]

3. "Who also kind of lack experience".

Christ on a trailer hitch!, we’re not talking about a startup company here. This is the freaking DoD, the mightiest fighting force in the history of mankind and a department the consumes over 13% of our nation’s entire budget!

The media needs to quit pussyfooting around and start screaming at the top of their lungs that there are NO ADULTS IN THE ROOM within this administration!

[Traildogbob]

4. So maybe

This means HIS generals may not shoot us at trumps command. And his attempt to use the insurrection act to end democracy may lead to his ass drug out in the street. With his cohorts.
They have the right to not follow illegal orders.
Like invading Greenland, Canada or Panama.
Watch this Space.
Putin is NOT their commander.

[MarineCombatEngineer]

6. My sense is that even if Been A Dick Donald's generals did follow his commands

to deploy the military against US citizens, the line officers and NCO's would refuse to obey such an illegal order, they are the ones that actually get things done, not the upper echelon of the military.

[exboyfil]

10. I think it would come down to plausible deniability

Short of orders firing on unarmed civilians, the low risk approach would be to follow orders (move them out or capture them not so gently). You refuse to follow orders you could find yourself with a long stay at Leavenworth and even in front of a firing squad.

To rely on the rank and file military to do what Congress should do is wrong. In fact it pretty much means the end of our democracy (which is probably ending anyway). I am very uneasy about the military taking direct action against the executive branch.

[summer_in_TX]

15. "Been A Dick Donald"

[yellowcanine]

24. AKA Douchebag Donnie

[GoCubsGo]

5. One would think this person would have learned from Trump's first term.

It was also riddled with infighting. And, now in his second run, he has hired only the most imbecilic, unqualified sycophants. It's a given that there will be infighting--on steroids. Not sure why this person is so "stunned" over it.

[underpants]

7. I still can't find who reported on this. Who broke this leak?

I’m guessing one of the three people recently fired leaked it but I can’t find the details.

[Tickle]

14. It is always anonymous

Whiskey Pete is denying it and until a person comes out with their name and proof, nothing will come of it.

[Dennis Donovan]

18. According to the article, the defense department's former chief spokesman John Ullyot was the source

Is that what you meant?

[underpants]

19. Yes. I must've missed that

[exboyfil]

8. They can't even get along with each other

[mountain grammy]

9. Like watching the Righteous Gemstones

[johnnyplankton]

11. I can't believe I'm cheering for a miliatary coup!

[Buddyzbuddy]

12. Only a moron would've picked a bigger drunken moron to be in charge of the military.

Way to teach them liberals how to run things.
How do either of those dopes justify waking up everyday. C'mon call it, TOD 4/21/25 you pick the time.

[Clouds Passing]

13. That's their plan, cause infighting and crisis, take over

[Initech]

16. Two things:

1. Stop watching Fox News!

2. Stop voting for the extremely terrible and unqualified candidates Fox News endorses!

[Mike 03]

17. "...near collapse... "

Well let's get on with it then. Out with the ineptitude, in with some competence.

Great story. Kick and Rec big time!

[bluesbassman]

20. The problem is we have approximately 1.3 million active duty service members, including my son on a destroyer.

Letting upper command "collapse" makes me pretty nervous about our service members' safety and effectiveness.

[Maru Kitteh]

21. The problem is the longer this goes on, the greater danger your son will be trapped

in a military that does not operate in the interests of the people of the United States, but as a pure MAGA force.

That likely places him in much greater danger, along with the rest of us.

[bluesbassman]

23. Absolutely agree.

[Kid Berwyn]

22. Another bad thing, necessarily.

A projective reminder from 2016:

… In his (Moscow New Economic School) remarks, (Carter) Page condemned current American policy for its “often-hypocritical focus on democratization, inequality, corruption and regime change.”

https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/07/2016-trump-putin-russia-gop-platform-214074/