MS NOW’s Nicolle Wallace questioned Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s capability on her show on December 3, 2025. She termed the current state of affairs as “sloppy and haphazard,” and contemplated how much more embarrassment President Donald Trump was willing to bear from his Defense Secretary.
Wallace’s comments on “Deadline: White House” followed a series of controversies involving Hegseth. These include a controversial Caribbean boat strike and an ongoing Pentagon Inspector General review into his use of the Signal messaging app.
“Pete Hegseth at Donald Trump’s cabinet meeting seemed to further embarrass himself,” Wallace pointed out, referring to his comments about the boat strike incidents.
The controversy revolves around a military strike on September 2, 2025, targeting a suspected drug-smuggling boat in the Caribbean Sea. Reports suggest that Hegseth gave a verbal order to “kill everybody” on the boat. Following the initial strike, a second strike was called in, killing two survivors who clung to the wreckage.
Wallace highlighted inconsistencies in Hegseth’s accounts. Initially, he told Fox News that “I watched it live. We knew exactly who was in that boat, we knew exactly what they were doing.” However, during a Cabinet meeting on December 2, Hegseth claimed he had left after the first strike, distancing himself from responsibility for the second strike.
Since September, the Trump administration has carried out at least 22 boat strikes in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific, resulting in at least 83 deaths in operations against suspected narco-terrorists.
Wallace also addressed what she called “Signalgate,” referring to the Pentagon’s investigation into Hegseth’s use of Signal. She described the situation as a significant national security breach, facilitated by the unorganized nature of Donald Trump’s national security team sharing sensitive information, including war plans.
Hegseth reportedly shared information about a military operation in Yemen that took place in March through Signal, a commercial messaging app. Wallace explained, “That report says that Pete Hegseth shared information in that Signal chat. Information—that put mission operations and servicemen and women at risk—about a pending military operation in Yemen that took place in March of this year.”
The Inspector General’s report, released on December 3, found that while the mission was not compromised, Hegseth violated his department’s policies by using Signal, an app not approved for sharing classified information.
In the messages, Hegseth revealed details about targets, timing, and aircraft to at least two separate Signal groups. One group included senior Trump officials and, inadvertently, Jeffrey Goldberg of The Atlantic. The second group included his wife, brother, and personal lawyer.
Wallace pointed out the uneven handling of Hegseth’s violations, arguing that if anyone else had committed such acts, they would face severe consequences, possibly including criminal prosecution.
Despite the Inspector General’s findings, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell declared the report a “total exoneration” of Hegseth, a claim disputed by Wallace and other critics.
Hegseth, a former Fox News host, narrowly survived a contentious Senate confirmation in January 2025, confirmed only after a tie-breaking vote by Vice President JD Vance. The Army National Guard combat veteran faced intense scrutiny over allegations of sexual misconduct, excessive drinking, and mismanagement of veterans’ organizations during confirmation hearings.
Wallace further criticized the ongoing scandals as “an embarrassment not only for the nation that the military serves, [but] for the men and women in it, and for its commander-in-chief, Donald Trump.”
Wallace ended her segment by questioning Trump’s tolerance for continued controversy. “And it calls into question just how much more embarrassment Donald Trump is going to tolerate from his handpicked, bipartisanly opposed Secretary of Defense,” she added.
The White House continues to support Hegseth despite the growing controversies. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that “President Trump stands by Secretary Hegseth.”
Congressional investigations into both the boat strikes and Signal communications are ongoing, with lawmakers from both parties demanding full transparency and accountability.
“Deadline: White House” airs weekdays at 4 p.m. ET on MS NOW, where Wallace regularly provides political analysis and commentary on current events.