CNN host Erin Burnett uncorked a brutal fact check on Tuesday of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s claims that members of the military have to follow orders, regardless of their legality.
During a segment on her show, “Erin Burnett OutFront,” Burnett played a video that CNN’s KFile investigators found of Hegseth talking about illegal orders in 2016. Burnett pointed out that Hegseth’s rationale at the time was starkly different than the one he has displayed recently.
“I do think there have to be consequences for abject war crimes,” Hegseth said in the video. “If you’re doing something that is just completely unlawful and ruthless, then there is a consequence for that. That’s why the military said it won’t follow unlawful orders from their commander in chief.”
“He’s talking about not following unlawful orders,” Burnett said. “Does that sound familiar?”
The Trump administration’s strikes against alleged drug boats in international waters have inspired debate about military orders. To date, the administration has conducted more than 20 strikes that have killed nearly 100 people, but has provided scant evidence that their targets are a threat to national security.
Multiple Democrats, all of whom are military veterans, recently made a video telling military members that they do not have to follow illegal orders. Trump described the video as “seditious behavior,” and Hegseth has threatened to court-martial the Democrats featured in the video.
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