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<\/p>\nDefense Secretary Pete Hegseth pushed back forcefully on Monday, criticizing the media and \u201cdisgruntled former employees\u201d as coverage intensified surrounding the Signal messaging controversy. Speaking to reporters at the White House during the traditional Easter Egg Roll, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth firmly denied recent reports claiming he participated in a second Signal app conversation in which classified details about strikes in Yemen were allegedly shared. Hegseth dismissed the claims and emphasized that he and President Donald Trump are fully aligned.<\/p>\n
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\u201cWhat 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,\u201d Hegseth said, responding to new reporting from The New York Times. \u201cThis 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,\u201d Hegseth continued. \u201cNot going to work with me, because we\u2019re changing the Defense Department, putting the Pentagon back in the hands of war-fighters. And anonymous smears from disgruntled former employees on old news doesn\u2019t matter. So I\u2019m happy to be here at the Easter Egg Roll with my dad and my kids.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked if he had spoken with the president, the former Fox News host said he had. \u201cAnd we are going to continue fighting. On the same page all the way,\u201d Hegseth said. At the same event, Trump also\u00a0expressed confidence\u00a0in his SECDEF and blasted the most recent reports as false. \u201cIt\u2019s just fake news,\u201d Trump said to reporter. \u201cYou know, he was put there to get rid of a lot of bad people, and that\u2019s what he\u2019s doing. You don\u2019t always have friends when you do that. He is doing a great job \u2026 Ask the Houthis how he\u2019s doing,\u201d Trump noted further, in reference to the ongoing US strikes on Houthi terrorists in Yemen.<\/p>\n