Pentagon Pete Will Be First Big Scalp of Trump 2.0 | The Daily Beast Podcast

Do we think that Hegeseth is in Last Chance Saloon here, and he's frantically paddling under the surface. and trying to show his boss that he's capable. We were told early on that Trump did not want a repeat. of his first administration, where it was kind of chaos. He was firing people, were hiring people. It was it was a lot of unrest within the administration. So my guess is watch out for January and accept because I don't think he's. going to he's going to last much longer than that first year.

So much going on in D.C. now the president is back from his victory tour of the Middle East. And of course, he's now apparently planning his arc to Trump, which I think he's been inspired by. Obviously, the arc de Triomphe in Paris and perhaps Marble Arch, because I gather he's going for angels and all. sorts of fancy things on the top of his planned, which he wants to go, across the Potomac River and opposite were where.

it was supposed to be going opposite guys, we've got two of our DC. correspondents with us. They know much more about it than I do. Sarah, you Will Weiss and David Gardner, who are the authors also of our must read. The Swamp newsletter, which comes out every Tuesday night. and is packed with juice about what's actually going on there. Give us an up to date. sitrep on what's happening with the Trump arc, and then I want to make sure that we leave time.

to talk about his happy space as general contractor of the ballroom. Before we get deep into what the hell is going on with Pete Hegseth. So this was actually revealed to reporters because they were called. into the Oval Office for an unrelated event, and the plans. were out in the office and people were looking at it. And so what it appears to be is the early stages. of another Trump building project in Washington, DC.

And what they have, according to these mockups, is this arc going across the river, from the Lincoln Memorial. So just outside, it's still in Washington, DC, but on the very edge of Washington. And it's just another project that the president is working on, perhaps in preparation for the 250th. anniversary of the United States. But it is something that we've just kind of been seeing, like bits and pieces.

of all these different projects that the president has been working on. or thinking about as he totally tries to make over Washington, in his image or in the image of things that inspire him. It's really extraordinary. to think how physically he wants to leave his mark on the city. David, we know that actually, even Jeffrey Epstein, who was one of Donald Trump's. in the end, strongest critics, said that the one thing he understood. was real estate. He actually understood how to build a tower.

It was the one place he felt happy in. Do you think that's what's going on here with the ballroom? Absolutely. He kind of judged himself on on being a property guy. It was his. I mean, he even now, he he claims to have created the entire New York skyline. That's his that's his legacy as a property developer. Now, he wants to kind of create the new DC skyline. that he's that, you know, he sees things in bricks and mortar, you know, not not knowing literature or art.

I mean, I think, you know, he, he, he can't resist showing off. And this is a very clear and obvious way of showing off his power and his money. Well, to be honest, I'd rather see a building. by Donald Trump than have to read a novel by Donald Trump. I could imagine they might make it compulsory. reading for all school age kids, and then we would all be tested on it. And anybody doing a visa or a passport application might have to answer. complicated questions on Donald Trump's, fiction. So.

what is it like you work there every day? Does the city feel does the city feel. as if he has Donald Trump's what can't be argued with energy? Of all people feeling lively? Do people feel like they're just waiting for him to go? Is everybody geared up for the midterms? What is the feeling like there amid all these. new private clubs that I know you're both hanging out? I think it's a confusion because in DC, DC used to transition.

I mean, every four years people lose their jobs, they move on, they move back. You know, that's nothing new. But this time around and there's a certain kind of, equanimity about it. They can understand it and they kind of interact with it. This time around. People are confused. They don't really know what to expect, or the norms are no longer normal. That was the conversations.

I mean, you literally go for dinner these days and you have to. say, let's let's just spend 20 minutes not talking about Donald Trump. Is the conversation across the city, whether you like it or not? And it dominates, and I think that's been the same for all since January here and before. Well, he would love that. Right. That that's exactly what he wants to do. Sarah, what about all these clubs that you're hanging out at? What are you picking up? It does David's,

summary sound familiar? Yeah. So there has been a real vibe shift in Washington, DC, and that really did start. It was right in your face, starting with the inauguration. And it's hard to describe. exactly how it shifted, but but there has been a definite shift. One thing that I think is funny, interesting in terms of how DC is handling. the second round of Donald Trump, is Donald Trump brought the National Guard. into Washington, DC, and he's talking about Washington, DC.

being dead and people not going to restaurants for four years. and it being, shut down and a dead, dirty city. And that is not accurate in any sense of it. So the picture he's painting is very different from the reality in DC. There's a political shift, there's a vibe shift. The people coming in to Washington are different. There's a lot more of, the businessmen buying homes here, which means that. they're also lobbying for some things that you would expect in Washington, DC.

But the city is vibrant and has been through Biden and Trump previously. I mean, it took a downturn for Covid. But that's not the picture that he has painted in the past couple, even months after he brought in National Guard in August. And now we say everything's back and you can go out and you can do things. The city has been open for business and thriving, for quite some time. But people are talking about it more because. you see things like National Guard, troops walking down the street. still there are picking up the trash and scrubbing the sides, sidewalks.

and whatnot. Which is a very different from in previous administrations. But between that aspect of it and also the different people. who have been showing up here in terms of business. Yes, there are a lot more private clubs coming in. The ones that are only Trump, MAGA folk and then the ones that are also just like, let's mix and mingle, but are still very exclusive, have been showing up and it does raise questions. on where the deals are actually being made and by who.

Interesting. And in terms of the idea of an arc. to Trump opposite, as you say, the Lincoln Memorial, but just across the river are people taking this seriously? I mean, you say the plans were left out where they left out on purpose, I suspect. So, I mean, the on the trail, for instance, was was built. for the victims of the the Revolutionary War, the Napoleonic Wars. There's a, it's a flame underneath it.

What's what's this going to commemorate? Barron Trump? I mean, who knows what what he's intentions on on how he's going to. But one one knows it's going to be a memorial, a giant memorial to Donald Trump himself in some form or another. I mean, sure, on the history. He was talking about the ballroom three administrations ago. He was offering to build it. He wanted to, you know, he was telling Obama he was telling, Biden that he wanted to do it and then happily stump up the cash. I mean, now he's got the chance to do it.

I mean, again, this is all about, I grew up so far. and grew up around this one. And that's if you listen to Donald Trump any day of the week. That's a lot of what is about. It's interesting because it is all about Donald Trump. But it also kind of goes to show. how little Donald Trump has been out in Washington. And I'm very curious to see on why they chose the location. They chose, because when you drive. into Washington, DC, if you're a visitor coming from Reagan Airport, which is, one of the main airports here, you go through Virginia.

and it's a bit darker right before you get to the city, and then you get onto the bridge and you see this gorgeous Lincoln. Memorial, the marble off across the bridge all lit up. And it is a spectacular view coming into DC. It'll be interesting to see what changes when you drive into Washington. If they're changing that up and you come out of Virginia. and you see the side of this arc, or it'll be a just a different. invitation it to Washington, but it still will be. The first thing you see is the arc that Trump built.

If you're flying into that airport, as you make your way into Washington. So it'll it'll be interesting to see how that's received, in terms of. who you think of when you drive into DC, but also what you see. And that'll be a different, landscape, if you will. His ambition really seems to know no bounds. Do we know how it's going to be financed? Because we know that the, ballroom is being financed by American companies that. Have been the big mystery for all of these projects.

Trump has forked up the cash for the flagpoles at the white House. He tore up the rose garden, and he said he paid for that. He said he paid for this $200 million ballroom. But then it turns out he's also soliciting donations, and it's not sure. how exactly he's. how how he's soliciting those donations or who's forking over that money yet. they haven't revealed who those donors are or what they got in return. Whether it's a sign on the wall. in the ballroom, in gold, or if it's something else.

And so that is one of the biggest questions. about all of these projects is not just where the money comes from, but how exactly it was gathered. But perhaps it comes through some more media companies. That seems to be a good way, then, to raise money for his library. Well, I was going to say I think they're going for his library and his library, and he's had the building donated, I think, by Miami-Dade County. And let's hope he gets on with it and can finish it faster than President.

Obama has finished his library, which is still outstanding in Chicago. But the other thing. that you've been dealing with in DC, while you're dealing with all the things. all the time, as as the Swamp newsletter makes clear, is, the most recent developments at the Pentagon with Pete Hegseth, saying he's going to restrict access to journalists. and that everybody needs to sign new rules. Which sounds like a do a Lipa song, doesn't it? Maybe that's where he got it from.

But in fact, what he managed to provoke was an unlikely allies ship. among the press, who for once stood together and said they weren't prepared to do it. Can you fill us in on exactly what's going on there? What is he actually trying to achieve. With trying to achieve a situation where he doesn't get criticized for anything? And he keeps total control. He's the youngest, secretary of war planning war or defense of any in your.

But certainly in terms of the Trump administration, the secretary of war, he lost control very early. I mean, he's basically come down on his own staff, for claiming that they're leaking information from the from the Pentagon, when in fact the only one is actually but leaks and if you have any significance. is himself, with the whole signal war, debacle when he included, the editor.

in chief of the Atlantic on his own. Signal chart. And this was when he was leaking classified war plans. Yeah. So basically that was that was he was talking about. a classified military strike on Yemen, and that was basically. he he then spread that information to his own group. So, so. that's that's one kind of study, ridiculous element of this whole thing. The other the other bizarre element is that he has a boss who is basically.

the audience is operating to, Donald Trump, who won't stop talking. He's, he's he's inviting the press in the press conferences every day, widespread. I mean, he's talking about every subject, some of the some, with Mr. Hexa, he's had two actual briefings. He stops all the, background briefings, which basically did journalists. a good idea. of what's going on in the department and what's going on certain situations,

so they can have the perspective and the context to, to to get things right. He stopped all those. He wasn't. He now won't allow anybody and journalists into his department, without being escorted. And this latest thing is where he, he said. that any information they, publicize must be authorized by himself or his department. And this is this is the the kind of maligning what this causes rebellion. I'm up the press.

So, Sarah, tell us a bit about the rebellion among the press, because this seems fairly unprecedented, isn't it? Well, we've never had an instance where the entire press corps. at the Pentagon has been asked to sign a, document. saying they won't release any information without prior approval from the Pentagon. I mean, that goes against what reporting is. And so we've had multiple administrations, for decades where this has not been something,

but they offered up this 21 page, set of rules that they must abide by. But it really has united. every part of the media across across the landscape. I mean, we've got all the way to Newsmax saying they won't sign on to this, along with Fox News not signing on to it. The president's favorite channel to watch. And of course, as you talk about the the mainstream media or the legacy media. with NBC, and ABC and CBS,

so this has united almost everyone together. And this is not what journalism is. It's not what journalism does, and it's not. what the First Amendment is about, which protects the freedom of the press. And so that has been, uniting pushback. on this administration, that I think maybe was, ended up with more unity than they had expected. And it goes to show where they are with this, because. just on Monday or this week, I forget what day of the week we are in on. On Tuesday, the president was seated right down.

from the secretary and head chef was asked about this by reporters. It at the white House. And he bought point blank, lied. about what this whole thing was about right next to the president. He said they're just not allowing them to go into restricted areas. He said the reporters were able. to roam free without badges, basically, and that's just never been the case. So he's going off of a set of lies. Just stand sitting next to the president and then the president hear this.

And he's like, well, yeah, maybe not going into classified places, not something that was happening before. And then the president started riffing on how maybe we'll kick the press. out of the white House, too, and put them across the street, which he could do, I guess. But also, I think that would receive similar pushback. And unity from the news organizations. And also, I can't imagine the president long term, going without speaking to the media. So that would be another, challenge for that. So it seems that Pete Hegseth has had somewhat of a catastrophic.

first few months. He leaks classified war plans, then pretends they weren't classified, and then, he calls he summons all the generals ten days ago. from across the world, creating a security issue, and then tells them that he's. going to start firing fat generals, which I think he's done now. He's trying to ban journalists from the Pentagon unless they sign, unless they sign something saying.

that they will show the Pentagon exactly what they're going to say. Is he going to fire fat journalists? I'm wondering if we even have the right weight and height. ratio to be having this conversation without Pete. But what I'm really asking is, is this for the audience of one. for Donald Trump, that Donald Trump knows that he hasn't actually been great? His birthday parade was pretty unimpressive compared. to what the Chinese promptly put on, and what the Brits put on when he went to Windsor Castle.

So do we think that US is in Last Chance Saloon here? And he's frantically paddling under the surface. and trying to show his boss that he's capable of, Well, I don't really know what this is supposed to symbolize that he's capable of. I'm sorry. We were. told early on that Trump did not want a repeat. of his first administration, where it was kind of chaos. He was firing people, hiring people. It was it was a lot of unrest within the administration.

We were told he was going to give these is his cabinet, most of these leading cabinet members a year. So there wasn't this kind of constant departure thing. So my guess is watch out for January. And except because I don't think he's going to, he's. going to last much longer than that first year. I would say that was also part of the strategy, though, because if you say your cabinet members are not going to be long term choices, from the get go, then you put them in this competition from the get.

go to basically fight it out and prove who's the most loyal to the president. And that has been something that the president has valued above. all else, above how they handled the job, how they handled the policy. It is how they basically support him. And so chef has maybe been under water this entire time as a defense secretary, having little to no experience compared to other. previous, defense secretaries.

But he's underwater in the job, but he's not underwater, too, in the same sense, when it comes to his fight for the president. And you see them all start with. lavishing heaping praise on this president in every meeting. I mean, even when he was talking about the press requirements, he started by hitting the press over coverage of, the Gaza agreement and then went on to talk about. the make up stories about why they actually need these restrictions. And so it's really a fight for the president's.

attention, and support, more than it is a fight for the job and the department. So. Sorry he's more. you of the list in terms of efficiency and top of the list in terms of suck ups. Was it. significant that Pete Hegseth wasn't on the Middle East tour? I mean, certainly, yeah. I mean, he's taken very much a back, step to the whole procedure, hasn't he? I mean, Marco Rubio, who was who since the other side of,

John at the cabinet meetings, he was all these things and he's taking a more of a central role. And HEXO is stepping back. I mean, certainly certainly, guys, I don't think he's trusting in, I think you remember the last, meeting in the Middle East. He was put on a separate plane from the others, picks up, again, sending a message for Hass. Well, perhaps he had his own gym on that plane, because the one thing he does seem to enjoy doing is working out. And that may be as a sort of post, as someone who's wrestled with alcohol,

that it's a way of channeling his energy and his anxiety. But as we know, he's fired people who are around him. because he didn't trust him. The reports coming out of the Pentagon are that he is anxious, that he's nervous, that he's panicked. Which is why he's enforced some of these new rules on the press. Other than. being in good shape, which he appears to be.

In fact, I'm. somewhat puzzled and actually, Donald Trump himself picked up on this. with his arms. He seems unable to close his arms next to his body. They're sidetracked. His arms. They sort of stick out a bit like a penguin. Anyway, what do we think. that Donald Trump actually thinks of him? And then I was going to ask you. We know that Fox is part of this media alliance. that has decided not to sign his rules. He was a famously a co-host.

on a weekend, chat show at Fox. And we also know he's slightly gone after the Fox is Pentagon correspondent. I think it's Jennifer Griffin who he's reamed out. in previous press conferences. Yet we know that Trump loves Fox News. So can you square the circle for me here? I think the president in some ways picks. the people he picks for positions based on their looks. I mean, Caroline Leavitt, for one, whatever you think of her in terms of how she's been handling the job,

he he always talks about her lips and her face, when she's speaking to the media. He talks about central casting. He talked about the generals being out of central casting. I'm like, they're also decades of experience. A century or more of experience among these men. who gathered in Virginia recently. But he talks about things in terms of casting. And Pete headset for a moment was central casting in his mind in terms of a look, whether he had the criteria and the qualifications for the job.

that that was extremely questionable from the get go. And many people in this world, who know the Pentagon and know. the military, know the Defense Department said absolutely not. He has none of the qualifications. He has none of the prior experience, to lead this. And so the president went with this person, Ben Bass, because he was on Fox News, it would seem, and it was a close ally and supporter, but now he has to actually do the job. And I think that is where he's fighting so much for his life is there are still.

there have been so many embarrassing headlines for him that Trump may be, someone who likes the loyalty, but he also doesn't like embarrassing headlines. And that could be something that'll that'll come back. to be the biggest problem for Pete Hegseth. But when it comes to Fox News, it is interesting. because it feels like you're watching two different things. One, they have Jennifer Griffin, who's a fantastic Pentagon reporter. And she has been on Fox News for a long time and has been accurately.

reporting on the Trump administration and been critical. Where do of the Trump administration? And then you have her former colleague, Pete Hegseth, who has taken it out on her on numerous occasions. Called her out in at least one press briefing to her face. But she has fought back and was able to stand your ground. because she is such a smart, capable, educated reporter. That she has actually made him back off in front of the cameras himself.

And so I think there's a there's a divide at Fox News, and when you see her versus where you see him and I notice that. Do you haven't really seen the president attacking, Jennifer Griffin's. reporting in his tweets, which he has other Pentagon a reporters. But I'm not sure if there's anything there if he just hasn't seen her reporting, the same way he has seen Fox and Friends and other shows. And when he's actually watching the news. And can you also explain the role of, Pete Hegseth, his wife here?

She was, I think an executive producer at Fox. But the the word I hear from talking to people is that she. is sort of dragged around like an emotional support dog. So there are pictures of her on the wall. We know he's wrestled with alcohol problems, and she's supposed to be his not necessarily marital sponsor, but she's been in meetings that would be considered. classified meetings, which is very unusual for the role of a spouse.

But yeah, also, we know that her nickname among staffers at the, the department is Yoko Ono because she's pretty much inseparable from Texas. He's always around, and apparently offering her opinion. She's not appointed. She had no position there. But she is. She's a constant presence at the Pentagon. So you have to ask what kind of influence she does have over these decisions, especially when you're talking about the media, something she's familiar with.

She was executive producer at Fox and Friends and the Watters World. But what an experienced journalist in her own right. Not at not a sort of talking Ken like, her husband. So so that is certainly, the feeding him, among staff at the Pentagon, wondering exactly how much of a role she's played in this. whole, efforts to to take it out from the press. And, Sarah, what were the sort of what were the reactions.

from the Pentagon reporters yesterday when they gave in their badges? What were you hearing? I think there's a deep sadness, because these are people. who have been doing their jobs for many years, have been doing so accurately and working extremely hard around the clock, for some of the most consequential events in U.S. history. And some of them have years of experience, some of them have decades of experience. And so they have long ties to the building,

to the career officials who have worked in the building. There have been tears shed over this and frustration, because of these new rules and these being put. in by political appointees, specifically. And so there there is a lot of reporters, have been posting photos of the plaque on the wall, that has the pictures of all the Pentagon. reporters, the credentialed reporters who have been at the Pentagon daily,

days and nights, in many cases, and they're all saying, basically. a formal farewell to the building that they have called home. And the support that they've had in that building, for. as a whole, decades. And so it has been, a tough time. It also it says a lot about where the the media is at this moment, and where the news media is at this moment, where they are slowly being held back from doing their job, which is so important, to this country and to the world.

And yet there seems to be incredibly vigorous reporting. coming out of Washington. Do you think that Pentagon journalists. will stop reporting on the Pentagon as a result of this? Or do you think that actually, Pete Hegseth might have inadvertently. unleashed a new warrior ethos, as he says, brought to you by warrior, the warrior ethos in reporters, the. Pentagon press corps has been and will continue to be fantastic.

They are dedicated individuals. They are hardworking men and women, and they are. looking to get the truth, no matter where. And I don't expect anything else from them. Moving forward, they'll be doing it from different locations, perhaps in the future than at the Pentagon. But something that is interesting is, in many of these cases, the leaks that have been coming out. Well, one Trump used to himself, the one of the biggest leaks, in New York City. But now we have this Washington where they're trying to clamp down on leaks.

And I think when the information is important and when officials actually. see the danger of this information being hidden away or swept under the rug, they will continue to go to their trusted sources, and deliver that information. And I think one thing that keep in mind as we go forward with all of this is. this is all coming right before the inspector general himself. is supposed to release that report on signal gate. and the classified leak of information that he was investigating there. With that Yemen strike and the, group chat,

the WhatsApp chat, that was or a single chat, rather, that was, reported on by The Atlantic. And so through all of this, the the biggest leaker. himself, has been trying to clamp down on leaks. Will have this hanging over his head until it's released. and has been trying to minimize, the role of the inspector general. throughout all of this as it hangs over his shoulder. So it's projecting his own behavior. by trying to close down the Pentagon, press, crew.

So, David, final word to you. What can we look forward to in the swamp this week? If we just haven't read it, I can strongly advise you. your first story, which is about Pete Hegseth and his wife. trying to close down Fox News access to the Pentagon. But what else is that in there? Because it's it's a collection of very juicy stories, not least. tracking the real estate prices of the swanky suburbs of D.C. as Trump's business friends move in.

And indeed, the prices are going up in terms of the. But the billionaires are moving in, even aiding as the actual workers. don't have jobs and can't pay their mortgages. But on the swamp, we have a lovely story, actually. But there's been an exodus of journalists from the Washington Post of late, for, for. money, for political reasons in this case, the food critics, Tom CCMA, was left after 25 years.

And it's kind of funny because he's, he's had that job. where restaurants aren't supposed to know he's there. So he's kind of worn fat suits and wigs and false. teeth and, and the whole sort of thing. I mean, it's very Mar-A-Lago in a way that, he tells one funny story, where in a photograph of one of the reviews, there was a couple having dinner, you know, in a specific restaurant. And the lady in the picture.

wrote him afterwards saying, I think if I'm. the wife of one of the man in the photograph wrote in, saying that he was having dinner with a woman who was not his wife, not me. So basically, he made it out, this man with his mistress, in his restaurant review accidentally, which kind of brings to mind the whole situation. that the recent concert that Coldplay when. Of. Course. So anyway,

we we probably referred to him. as a critic and so that the story there's also a fun story. about how the food on board Air Force One has changed under President Trump. It is, a little bit higher brow, but not too much. And it used to be served in pasta, in cardboard boxes. Now he's throwing a bit more, daring Karen Levitt and model Martin and Stephen Chown, the communications. director of all, added their tastes to the, menu on this thing by Tex-Mex.

and, some Italian food on the on the menu. So he's he's kind of changed his changed his, menu for a bit. One intriguing. story, which we, wish the servants had a little bit more about. is about how there's a movement to try and get the lawmakers. to also take a pay cut while they're shutting down the government. I mean, speaking of the swamp, we are going on, 15 days of the government shutdown and lawmakers have been, not in Washington.

when it comes to the House specifically since their last vote was September 19th. And they have not returned for a vote since then. And by the end of the week, it'll be a month, and they're still getting paid. So while they threatened to furlough workers, they threatened to not give them back pay. They announced that they're going to do mass layoffs. These lawmakers who have not been doing their job, not been negotiating, have been in their districts, they all would argue they're working very hard in their districts.

They are still being paid. And lawmakers make $174,000, which is triple the average salary of an American. And so there have been numerous lawmakers. who have said they are not taking their salary. There have been lawmakers who have said they're donating their salary. But at the end of the day, the vast majority are still getting paid to stay home from work. And so that contradicts with a lot of what has been said about work. from home, about Washington, DC, and about the fact that the government is,

have to tighten the purse strings, doesn't have the money. So there there has been a lot of talk, on that front of getting paid to vacation. Well, if you will. Perhaps Pete Hegseth, as he'll be giving fewer press conferences. because there won't be any press to cover him, will also donate part of his salary. to those workers who are getting nothing right now. Well, I can't recommend the swamp highly enough. We call it the page six of politics. I always look forward to it coming out, because I know there's going to be some juicy detail in there.

Thank you so much, both of you, for joining us. To everybody out there, if you haven't read The Swamp, you can sign up for it. Please subscribe. Subscribe to The Daily Beast to leave us a comment wherever you get your podcasts. Apple. Spotify, feel free to subscribe to the podcast, The Daily Beast podcast and join our community. You can join The Daily Beast community, where you get all sorts. of extra content and access to some of our finest journalists.

And as a reminder, for our members. only, we have a special live YouTube tomorrow. with myself, Nico Hines, our global editorial director, and with another of our DC correspondents, Farrah Thomasin. So get your questions ready, join up and we will answer. to the best of our abilities. Until then, don't forget. Obviously as our first lady, whatever she is up to talking to Putin, who knows?

Looking forward to. promoting her, Amazon documentary. Don't forget to be a beast. I want to thank our special beast membership tier Karen White, Heidi Riley, Connie Rutherford, Sharon Shipley, Andrea Hodel, and Free DC. And thank you to our production team, Devin Roger Reno and Yvonne Ersan and our editor, Jesse Millwood.