Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth Begins 'Most Important Deployment of My Life'

Reporting cited here

1. documented

   After Donald Trump selected Pete Hegseth to lead the Defense Department, the Senate confirmed him on a 50–50 vote with Vice President JD Vance voting yea; Vance swore Hegseth in on January 25, 2025, and the department's current biography records that he remains its secretary as of September 3, 2026.

   January 25, 2025 swearing-in and Trump selection

   Trump's defense nominee won a 50–50 Senate vote with the vice president breaking the tie · Defense secretary as of September 3, 2026

2. documented

   While serving in Trump's Cabinet, Pete Hegseth sent sensitive, nonpublic operational information about the March 15 Yemen strikes from his personal phone through Signal; the Defense Department inspector general found that this violated DoD Instruction 8170.01 and created risk to personnel and mission objectives, while recognizing Hegseth's original-classification authority and not making a finding that his transmitted summary remained classified.

   Hegseth's Trump-selected Cabinet role

   Pentagon watchdog found Hegseth used his personal phone and Signal for nonpublic strike details · Final inspector-general report issued December 2, 2025