"He doesn't know how to manage", the internal war within the Pentagon against Hegseth

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's numerous missteps have fueled internal strife within the Pentagon and raised concerns among some Republicans on Capitol Hill about his ability to lead the department, sources told the prestigious Wall Street Journal.

The problems are rooted in Hegseth's lack of managerial experience in overseeing an entity as large as the Pentagon, which employs about 3.4 million people with a budget now approaching $1 trillion, according to current and former officials, A2 writes.

White House officials were frustrated by Hegseth’s refusal to part ways with his acting chief of staff, despite their doubts about the aide’s qualifications, according to current and former administration officials. Some of these people said the Pentagon’s poor performance is why Trump was left in the dark about a cutoff of several arms shipments to Ukraine. Hegseth has clashed with senior generals and fired three top aides who were well-liked in the White House.

On Thursday, Senate Republicans led by Mitch McConnell tried to rescue the Pentagon from what they saw as an inadequate budget request, for which they partly blame Hegseth. Some Republican lawmakers are concerned that the loss of Hegseth's top aides has left him particularly unfit to lead the Defense Department.

“If you just look at the broader shift in power and the lack of stability there in terms of executive management, I think it’s a red flag,” said Senator Thom Tillis, the North Carolina Republican who cast the deciding 50th vote to confirm Hegseth in January and recently announced he would not run for reelection.

There is no indication that Hegseth’s job is in jeopardy. Trump and Vice President JD Vance have stood by him after spending tremendous personal energy and political capital to confirm him. The president likes Hegseth personally and was particularly pleased by the successful U.S. strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, officials said. Other Republicans have strongly defended Hegseth’s record so far. (A2 Televizion)