Secretary of War Pete Hegseth took a reporter to task for a question concerning the U.S. ceasefire with Iran during a press conference that was held the morning after President Donald Trump announced the administration had reached a two-week ceasefire agreement with the Middle Eastern country, which followed after the president made a controversial Truth Social post saying, “a whole civilization will die tonight” if the two nations didn’t come to an agreement.
A reporter in the crowd during the press conference asked Hegseth about the terms of the ceasefire, pointing out that Iran was still continuing to hit targets with missiles after the ceasefire announcement was made. “What we know is that Iran is going to say a lot of things. A lot of people are going to say a lot of things, claim a lot of things,” Hegseth, a former Marine and host on Fox News, went on to say.
“What has been agreed to, what’s been stated is, the Strait is open. Our military is watching, sure their military is watching, but commerce will flow. And that’s what you saw the markets react to is that reality,” he added. “Iran would be wise to find a way to get the carrier pigeon to their troops out in remote locations to know not to shoot, not to shoot any longer, one-way attacks or missiles, because it takes time sometimes for ceasefires to take hold.”
Hegseth then said, “We’re watching it. We’re prepared, if necessary, but we hope and believe that it will hold.” Just as the secretary was about to call on a different reporter, someone shouted, “They’re still firing ballistic missiles!”
Hegseth turned toward the individual who had interrupted and went ballistic over the utter rudeness on display. “Excuse me, why are you so rude? Just wait. I’m calling on people,” Hegseth said. Under his breath, he whispered, “So nasty.”
And that wasn’t the only tense exchange that took place during the press conference. A reporter from ABC News asked Hegseth if some of his rhetoric about Iranian troops may have put soldiers at risk. A total of 13 soldiers have been killed in the war as of this writing.
“No!” Hegseth fired back. “I try to be nice up here, but you did listen to what I said. Right? I laid out the objectives we believe. We’ve accomplished them, and it’s a historic military victory.” He added, “It’s the typical — of course, it’s ABC. Not a single thing we’ve done has put an American troop in more of a harm’s way.”
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Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine stated that he didn’t really understand the reporter’s question, and Hegseth put the individual in their place, characterizing what was said as “an indictment framed as a question.” The reporter attempted to ask a different question, but Hegseth intervened, saying, “No, you’ve had your chance.”
Hegseth’s handling of the media during the interactions at the presser reminded folks on social media of how President Trump himself deals with “gotcha questions” from left-leaning news outlets. In March, the president lashed out at a reporter for asking a question while on Air Force One, referring to the individual as an “obnoxious person.”
Featured Image: screenshot from embedded video