Backlash over Pentagon-produced address
November 7, 2026 · 11:00 a.m. Eastern
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth faces mounting congressional scrutiny and formal federal ethics complaints following the release of an overtly political six-minute video produced outside the Pentagon using Department of Defense personnel and taxpayer resources.
The high-definition video, published across official and personal social media channels late Thursday, shows Hegseth delivering a combative monologue standing before the Department of Defense headquarters. In the address, Hegseth aggressively pushed back against calls for his resignation and defended the administration’s ongoing military intervention in Iran following the Republican Party’s severe midterm election defeats.
The broadcast ignited swift condemnation from nonpartisan government accountability watchdogs, who argue that deploying active-duty military communications specialists and public equipment to produce a partisan defense constitutes an egregious misuse of government property.
Defiant rhetoric following midterm losses
Titled “We Have Only Just Begun to Fight,” the video features Hegseth assailing political detractors, media commentators, and critical lawmakers who attributed Tuesday’s midterm losses to voter dissatisfaction with military escalation in the Persian Gulf.
Throughout the six-minute presentation, Hegseth praised President Donald Trump’s leadership, framed congressional oversight efforts as partisan warfare, and declared that he would not capitulate to political pressure to step down. The polished production utilized professional broadcast-grade camera cranes, multi-angle lighting, and digital graphics typically reserved for official Pentagon announcements.
“They think they can intimidate this department or force us to retreat,” Hegseth proclaimed in the video. “It won’t work with me. We are standing firm, rebuilding our military lethality, and answering only to the commander-in-chief.”
CREW alleges Hatch Act and propaganda violations
Nonpartisan ethics watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) and Common Cause filed formal complaints Friday with the Pentagon Inspector General and the U.S. Office of Special Counsel, demanding an immediate investigation.
CREW President Donald K. Sherman stated that Hegseth’s video plainly transgressed statutory boundaries, citing federal prohibitions against utilizing appropriated taxpayer funds for partisan publicity and propaganda, the Anti-Lobbying Act, and the Hatch Act, which forbids executive branch officials from using their official authority or government resources to influence electoral or political processes.
“Secretary Hegseth turned the Pentagon grounds and official military production assets into a partisan campaign set,” Sherman said in a statement. “Using service members and taxpayer-funded video equipment to settle political scores and advance partisan agendas is illegal, unethical, and corrosive to civilian-military relations.”
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