“I’ll hook you up to a f**king polygraph!” Hegseth shouted at Grady, the outlet reported, citing two sources familiar with the exchange. The altercation occurred amid revelations that he had arranged a classified briefing for the head of President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, Elon Musk, on secret war plans in China.
According to The Times of London, Hegseth has created an intimidating atmosphere by threatening lie detector sessions. “The extraordinary thing is that lie detector tests are being threatened not to uncover potential anti-President Trump civil servants but to catch political appointees suspected of leaking classified or sensitive information,” a source in defence said.The outburst at the Navy admiral was not Hegseth’s only reference to the lie detector, according to the American daily. He reportedly threatened many others with the test, including Lt. Gen. Doug Sims, the Joint Chiefs director.
The report is only the latest setback for Hegseth.Earlier, he was criticised for sharing detailed plans about an impending attack on Houthi rebels in Yemen in unsecured Signal chats, which also included the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic. This week, another controversy came to light when he used another unclassified group chat to discuss the same plans with his wife, his brother, and his personal lawyer, among others.
According to reports, he also set up an unsecured internet connection in his office to bypass a lack of cell signal and use Signal. These reports have led to several abrupt firings and resignations.
In a joint statement last Saturday, three aides who were shown the door said, “At this time, we still have not been told what exactly we were investigated for, if there is still an active investigation, or if there was even a real investigation of ‘leaks’ to begin with.” An investigation by the Pentagon’s inspector general is ongoing, looking into Hegseth’s alleged mishandling of classified information.
Reports suggest Trump may replace Hegseth, but the White House has denied this. Despite the challenges, Hegseth has defended his actions, saying, “What a big surprise that a few leakers get fired and suddenly a bunch of hit pieces come out from the same media that peddled the Russia hoax.”
At the White House Easter Egg Roll, Hegseth added, “This is what the media does. They take anonymous sources from disgruntled former employees, and then they try to slash and burn people and ruin their reputations.”
