Trump national security adviser Mike Waltz had continued praise for Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth amid continued controversy including alleged leaks, security lapses and reports of chaos in the Defense Department under his leadership.
Fox News's Maria Bartiromo asked Waltz Sunday whether the Trump administration would be able to accomplish its foreign policy goals under "what appears to be a chaotic, weakened Defense Department."
"I'll tell you about a weakened Pentagon," Waltz fired back promptly. "That was one that had a Defense Secretary that disappeared for two weeks just last year, and nobody knew about it."
Waltz pointed out that Hegseth is "leading from the front" in contrast to his predecessor and praised early reform efforts at the Pentagon.
"He is leading the charge, and he has no tolerance for leaking," Waltz said, denying the reports of chaos as a "media narrative" that they would "power through."
Waltz also had a more positive take on the recent departure of top aides including Hegseth's Chief of Staff Joe Kasper last week.
"Maria, there’s 20,000 people in the Pentagon," Waltz said. "There is a record number of generals."
"And the other piece— there is accountability," he added. "We have had several general officers who weren’t getting the job done, and admirals get fired and get replaced… That’s what the Pentagon needs."
"Whether it’s leaks, or not getting the job done, or failures in terms of procurement acquisition, now you have a leader that’s in charge," Waltz said. "And I couldn’t be prouder of Pete Hegseth."
Despite reports of dysfunction, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said several days before Waltz's interview that Trump still strongly supported Hegseth.
"Let me reiterate: The president stands strongly behind Secretary Hegseth and the change that he is bringing to the Pentagon, and the results that he's achieved thus far speak for themselves," Leavitt told reporters at a briefing last week, calling the negative reports a "smear campaign."
It has been a little difficult to tell whether things are going poorly in some of Trump's agencies, or whether it's just the press trying to make the administration look bad to dishearten voters and bring down approval ratings.
Trump dismissed the so-called Signal leaks that included an editor from The Atlantic as "fake news."
“I don’t view Signal as important,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One on Friday as he flew to attend Pope Francis's funeral service.
