Is Hegseth the Dumbest Man in the Trump Admin?

Summary

Bulwark Takes

Episode: Is Hegseth the Dumbest Man in the Trump Admin?

Date: April 1, 2026
Host: Will Saletan (The Bulwark)

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Episode Overview

In this sharply critical episode, Will Salatan explores the controversial actions and rhetoric of Pete Hegseth, the Trump Administration’s Secretary of War, amid the ongoing U.S. war with Iran. The main focus is Hegseth’s divisive public briefings, where instead of uniting the nation or building international coalitions, he alienates political rivals, American allies, and even the media. Salatan systematically highlights Hegseth’s pattern of pettiness, incompetence, and inflammatory speech, questioning whether he might be "the dumbest person in the Trump administration."

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Hegseth’s Partisan Attacks During Wartime

• Initial Focus on Domestic Political Enemies

  • Hegseth uses his first war briefing (March 2) not to discuss the enemy (Iran) but to attack former President Obama:
    • "Iran had a conventional gun to our head as they tried to lie their way to a nuclear bomb. It almost worked under Obama and his terrible deal, but not under this president."
      (Hegseth, 01:29)
  • Commentary: Will points out that Hegseth is “back here fighting a domestic political war” instead of focusing on uniting Americans during an actual war.
    • (Salatan, 01:41)

• Continued Shots at Former Presidents

  • Praises Trump as a “genius” while denigrating Biden and, by extension, voters for both presidents.
    • "He has shown ability to do that other presidents can't quite seem to have the aperture to do. Well, I mean, Joe Biden didn't even know what he was doing." (Hegseth, 02:21)
  • Salatan notes: “Most Americans who voted for president in the last 20 years voted at some point for Obama or Biden. And here is the Secretary of War taking a gratuitous shot at all of those people.”
    • (Salatan, 02:29)

• Expanding Attacks to Republicans

  • Criticizes past GOP administrations (specifically George W. Bush and Paul Bremer) to demonstrate Trump’s superiority.
    • "Thus far, Operation Epic Fury has delivered twice the air power of shock and awe of Iraq in 2003, minus Paul Bremer and the nation building." (Hegseth, 03:22)
  • Will’s reaction: “He is trying to use this new war to settle his personal scores with all the Democrats and Republicans he doesn't like.”
    • (Salatan, 03:33)

Ongoing Pattern of Division

• Repeatedly Targeting Past Leaders
  • References to Bush, Obama, and Biden as having engaged the U.S. in “endless nation building,” blaming them for quagmires and failed missions.
    • “This is not endless nation building under those types of quagmires we saw under Bush or Obama.” (Hegseth, 04:29)
    • "This country's conditioned to previous leaders, whether it's George W. Bush or Barack Obama or Joe Biden, who had these expansive, nebulous mission sets that kept changing all the time." (Hegseth, 04:43)
    • "Watched previous foolish politicians like Bush, Obama, and Biden squander American credibility." (Hegseth, 05:03)

Attacks on Democrats, Broadly

• When asked about House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries' criticism of the war, Hegseth responded:
  • "Well, I've been through that movie before with Democrats rooting against the country." (Hegseth, 05:39)
  • Salatan: “Your job is not to win a political fight with the other party. Your job is to win an actual war.” (Salatan, 05:44)

Undermining U.S. Allies

• Insults Toward European Allies

  • Dismisses traditional partners as weak and ungrateful:
    • "Capable partners are good partners, unlike so many of our traditional allies who wring their hands and clutch their pearls, hemming and hawing about the use of force." (Hegseth, 06:34)
    • "Our ungrateful allies in Europe, even segments of our own press, should be saying one thing to President Trump: Thank you." (Hegseth, 07:10)

• Mocking the UK

  • When questioned about allied participation in operations near Iran:
    • "Last time I checked, there was supposed to be a big bad Royal Navy that could be prepared to do things like that as well." (Hegseth, 08:09)

• Avoids Criticizing Russia/China

  • Refuses to single out Russia and China for helping Iran:
    • “We know exactly what they're doing... We don't have to air publicly what all of that is.” (Hegseth, 08:37)
  • Salatan: “It's almost like Pete Hegseth is more respectful of Iran and Iran's allies than America's allies.” (Salatan, 08:44)

Religious Exclusivity Alienates Regional Partners

• Hegseth makes a point of including Christian prayers “in the name of Jesus Christ” during briefings, disregarding the fact that most U.S. coalition partners in the region are Muslim or Jewish.
  • “May Almighty God continue to bless our troops in this fight... In the name of Jesus Christ.” (Hegseth, 09:37; repeated 10:30)
  • Salatan: “If all of your allies in the region... are Muslim or Jewish, what is the dumbest thing you could say as the American Secretary of War?” (Salatan, 09:56)

Antagonism Toward the Media

• Consistently attacks the media as “fake news” and personally targets CNN:

  • “This is what the fake news misses... Or more fake news from cnn. The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better.” (Hegseth, 11:13)

• Blames the press for being "anti-Trump":

  • “A dishonest and anti Trump press will stop at nothing... Sadly, TDS is in their DNA.” (Hegseth, 11:54)

• Self-congratulates on crafting punchlines:

  • “My 13 year old son popped into my office last night while I was editing these remarks.” (Hegseth, 12:28)

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Memorable Quotes & Notable Moments

• On dividing America:

  • "Every time this guy talks, every time he goes after American presidents, he... He's dividing our own country."
    (Salatan, 05:17)

• On priorities as Secretary of War:

  • “Your job is to win an actual war. So you should be trying to avoid, or at least play down any domestic political differences. Instead, Hegseth is escalating.” (Salatan, 05:44)

• On attitudes toward allies and enemies:

  • “It's almost like Pete Hegseth is more respectful of Iran and Iran's allies than America's allies.” (Salatan, 08:44)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

| Timestamp | Segment | |------------|-----------------------------------------------------| | 00:30 | Introduction of Pete Hegseth as Secretary of War | | 01:29 | Hegseth’s first war briefing; attacks on Obama | | 02:21 | Hegseth’s praise for Trump, criticism of Biden | | 03:22 | Attacks on Bush/Republicans; “Operation Epic Fury” | | 04:29-05:03| Continued partisan shots at Bush, Obama, Biden | | 05:39 | Attack on House Dem leader Hakeem Jeffries | | 06:34 | Put-downs of European allies | | 07:10 | “Ungrateful allies in Europe” | | 08:09 | Mocking the UK’s Royal Navy | | 08:37 | Refusal to criticize Russia and China | | 09:37,10:30| Sectarian prayers for troops in Jesus' name | | 11:13 | Rants against CNN and calls for pro-Trump ownership | | 11:54 | Blames “TDS” (Trump Derangement Syndrome) in media | | 12:28 | Bragging about scripting zingers |

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Summary & Tone

The episode is unsparing and sarcastic, reflecting Will Salatan’s exasperation with Hegseth’s behavior. Salatan’s tone is incredulous and biting, emphasizing the absurdity of the Secretary of War’s relentless focus on division—within America, against America’s allies, and even within the administration’s own party. The message is clear: instead of building coalitions and focusing on strategic goals in a time of war, Hegseth is more invested in political point-scoring and performative partisanship. The episode ultimately asks whether such conduct makes Hegseth "the dumbest man in the Trump administration"—a point delivered with both serious concern and caustic wit.

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

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[A]

Hey, it's Will Salatan from the Bulwark. So who do you think is the dumbest person in the Trump administration? Now, I know it's a tough contest, but I think the answer might be Pete Hegseth, the Secretary of War. Today, I want to show you just how petty and incompetent and stupid this guy is. So here's the situation. We're in a war with Iran. Now, setting aside however you feel about that war, one of the main jobs of the Secretary of War is to unite our country and to build the broadest possible coalition on our side. Instead, this idiot is doing everything he can to alienate Americans and piss off other countries who should be our allies. So let me show you the first briefing he gave on the war. This is March 2nd, a month ago.

[C]

Iran had a conventional gun to our head as they tried to lie their way to a nuclear bomb. It almost worked under Obama and his terrible deal, but not under this president.

[A]

This is three minutes into his first briefing on the war. He hasn't even named the head or the former head of Iran, the country we're supposed to be fighting. Instead, he is already going after a former president of our country, Barack Obama. American troops are out there fighting the enemy, but Pete Hegseth is back here fighting a domestic political war. And then later in the same briefing, he. He decides to go after another American president. Here he is talking about what a genius Donald Trump is and what he

[C]

has shown ability to do that other presidents can't quite seem to have the aperture to do. Well, I mean, Joe Biden didn't even know what he was doing.

[A]

This is half an hour later. Hegseth still has not named the current or the former head of Iran, but now he's going after two. Two American former presidents. Most Americans who voted for president in the last 20 years voted at some point for Obama or Biden. And here is the Secretary of War taking a gratuitous shot at all of those people. Okay, but that still leaves another half of the country that didn't vote for Obama or Biden. So just in case exit didn't Piss off enough people in that first briefing. He came back two days later, and on March 4, he gave another briefing. And this time. This time, he started off with a shot at Republicans.

[C]

Thus far, Operation Epic Fury has delivered twice the air power of shock and awe of Iraq in 2003, minus Paul Bremer and the nation building.

[A]

So shock and awe was the bombing campaign in Iraq under George W. Bush, the last Republican president before Trump. So Hegseth is bragging that Trump's bombing campaign is way, way bigger than Bush's. Okay, we are in a war. We're literally in a war. And this guy is trying to have a size contest with the last Republican administration and. And that crack about Paul Bremer. So Paul Bremer was the guy that Bush put in charge of Iraq. Okay? Nobody. Nobody even remembers that. But Hegseth does. And he cannot let go. He is trying to use this new war to settle his personal scores with all the Democrats and Republicans he doesn't like. And he has kept this up in every briefing he's given during the war. Here he is on March 10.

[C]

This is not endless nation building under those types of quagmires we saw under Bush or Obama.

[A]

Bush and Obama again. And then here's Hegseth on March 13.

[C]

This country's conditioned to previous leaders, whether it's George W. Bush or Barack Obama or Joe Biden, who had these expansive, nebulous mission sets that kept changing all the time. So the timeline kept moving, and we kept pouring more troops in.

[A]

Bush, Obama, and Biden. He just can't stop. And here he is again on March 19th.

[C]

Hear it from me. One of hundreds of thousands who fought in Iraq and Afghanistan, who watched previous foolish politicians like Bush, Obama, and Biden squander American credibility.

[A]

Every time this guy talks, every time he goes after American presidents, he. He's dividing our own country. And he explicitly insults Democrats. Let me show you what happened on March 4 when a reporter asked Hegseth about the House Democratic leader, Hakeem Jeffries, who had criticized the war.

[C]

Well, I've been through that movie before with Democrats rooting against the country.

[A]

Rooting against the country. Look, you can disagree with the Democratic leader, but if you are the Secretary of War, your job is not to win a political fight with the other party. Your job is to win an actual war. So you should be trying to avoid, or at least play down any domestic political differences. Instead, Hegseth is escalating. He's using the war to attack all Democrats, the Democrats. He's helping Iran by Dividing America. And it's not just America. Hegseth is also attacking our allies in Europe. Check this out from his first briefing on March 2.

[C]

Israel has clear missions as well, for which we are grateful. Capable partners. As we've said since the beginning, capable partners are good partners, unlike so many of our traditional allies who wring their hands and clutch their pearls, hemming and hawing about the use of force.

[A]

Huh? Our traditional allies who clutch their pearls. Whoever could he be talking about? Well, in case it wasn't clear enough, he came back. He came back on March 19 and made it a little more obvious.

[C]

The world, the Middle east, our ungrateful allies in Europe, even segments of our own press should be saying one thing to President Trump. Thank you.

[A]

Our ungrateful allies in Europe. Trump started this war. He started this war without consulting any of our allies in Europe. And then our Secretary of War goes out in front of the press and makes it worse. He insults our allies. Okay, watch what happened this week on Tuesday, when a reporter asked Hegseth a two part question. First, about reopening the Strait of Hormuz, which is right next to Iran. And also second, about Russia and China helping Iran in the war. So the first thing Hegseth did in response to that question was he mocked one of our closest allies, the United Kingdom.

[C]

There are countries around the world who ought be prepared to step up on this critical waterway as well. It's not just the United States Navy. Last time I checked, there was supposed to be a big bad Royal Navy that could be prepared to do things like that as well.

[A]

Oh, the big bad Royal Navy. Hardy hard. And then 20 seconds later, still answering the same question, Hegseth refused to criticize Russia or China. Watch.

[C]

As far as Russia and China, we know exactly what they're doing, what they are or are not doing. We don't have to air publicly what all of that is.

[A]

We don't have to air that publicly. See, we don't want to upset Russia or China by talking about what they're doing to help Iran. But. But our own allies, like United Kingdom. Oh, we're happy to talk about them. We're happy to call them ungrateful pearl clutchers. It's almost like Pete Hegseth is more respectful of Iran and Iran's allies than America's allies. And it's not just Europe. We also have allies in the Persian Gulf. Now, they're not Christian countries, they're Muslim countries, except for one Jewish country, which is Israel. So. So if all of your allies in the region if all of them are Muslim or Jewish, what is the dumbest thing you could say as the American Secretary of War?

[C]

May Almighty God continue to bless our troops in this fight. And again, to the American people, please pray for them every day on Ben Dundee with your family, in your schools, in your churches. In the name of Jesus Christ.

[A]

In the name of Jesus Christ. Great. Great. Just in case our Muslim allies needed to be reminded that they share a religion with Iran and not with us, why don't we gratuitously tell them that we're praying for our troops specifically in the name of Jesus Christ. In fact, in case anybody missed that when Hegseth said it on March 19, let's do it again. Here he is on Tuesday this week, delivering another prayer for our troops.

[C]

May his almighty and eternal arms of providence stretch over them and protect them and bring them peace. In the name of Jesus Christ.

[A]

Jesus Christ. Literally Jesus Christ. Look, there's a time and there's a place to talk about your personal faith. But this war in this place is definitely not it. So let's see. Democrats, Republicans, our European allies, our Muslim allies. Is there anybody else we still need to pick a fight with? Oh yeah, the media. Let's see what Hegseth has to say about them.

[C]

This is what the fake news misses. I get it. The press only wants to make the President look bad, yet some in this crew in the press just can't stop. Or more fake news from cnn. The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better.

[A]

David Ellison, in case you weren't aware, is a billionaire. That Republicans want to take over TV news networks and make them more Trump friendly. So our troops are fighting Iran, but Hegseth is focusing on a different fight. He's talking about taking over CNN. So that was March 13th. And then a week later he kicked off his briefing with this.

[C]

A dishonest and anti Trump press will stop at nothing. We know this at this point to downplay progress, amplify every cost and call into question every step. Sadly, TDS is in their DNA.

[A]

Oh, that's clever. TDS is in their DNA. I bet Hegseth is really, really proud of that line. Do you know he actually brags about scripting all these lines? Okay, here he is talking about it at one of his briefings.

[C]

My 13 year old son popped into my office last night while I was editing these remarks.

[A]

Oh, I bet he did. See, Pete, Hegseth wants you to know how much work he puts into his job. He stays up late editing his remarks because that's what he cares about. He wants to come up with zingers that he can aim at Obama and Biden and Bush and the Democrats and all our ungrateful allies. This guy Hegseth does nothing to help us win the war. He doesn't fight it. He doesn't lead it. He doesn't rally Americans together. He just stands there in a suit and brags about it and insults everybody. All he has to do is not make things worse. All he has to do is not piss off our allies and divide our country. And he can't even do that. See you next time.