Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth caught his closest advisers off guard with a recent move, adding to Republican frustration over his leadership.
Hegseth’s revelation last week that the military would livestream the firing-squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan came as a surprise to nearly everyone at the Pentagon, even those closest to him, The Atlantic reported Thursday.
Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist, killed 13 people during a 2009 shooting spree at the Texas base and has sat on death row since 2013. After Trump signed off on the death sentence earlier this month, the Army said Hasan would face a firing squad in December. Hegseth then told right-wing podcaster Jack Posobiec the execution would be public, later clarifying on X that it would be streamed online.
The plan drew swift backlash inside the Trump administration, where one official described the reaction to The Atlantic as “pretty universal revulsion.”
Officials also questioned the optics of shooting a man paralyzed from the waist down after authorities shot him during his arrest. “Does Hegseth realize this guy is in a wheelchair?” was among the first questions raised, one official told The Atlantic.
Military and intelligence officials worried the footage would hand the Islamic State a propaganda tool. Rep. Austin Scott (R-GA) wrote on X that “live-streaming executions is what jihadists do,” while Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC) called the idea “beyond disgusting.”
Vice President JD Vance told reporters he would not be watching if the execution was streamed, a response one Trump administration official said reflected his broader irritation with Hegseth. Both men are reportedly weighing 2028 presidential runs. House Speaker Mike Johnson likewise said he would skip it.
Republican lawmakers also phoned Trump and his aides, warning that the stream would be barbaric and could damage the party’s push to keep control of Congress in the midterms. After those calls and a weekend of critical TV coverage, the president “soured on it pretty quickly,” one adviser said.
On Thursday, Trump announced the reversal on Truth Social. He argued a broadcast “might have been a strong deterrent” but said “many very good and well meaning people would rather not watch him die.” Hasan is still set to be executed at Fort Hood on December 3 before a limited audience.
The episode could add fuel to discontent among Republicans already unhappy with Hegseth’s performance, The Atlantic noted, though Trump has continued to back him. Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said Trump and Hegseth spoke before the announcement and are “completely aligned.”
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