TJ Walker breaks down a new Pentagon policy from Secretary Pete Hegseth that requires reporters to get pre-approval before sharing unapproved information, with threats to revoke press credentials. Major outlets including the New York Times, Washington Post, and CNN refused to sign. Walker calls it unconstitutional and authoritarian.
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Pentagon versus the press. Major media outlets push back. In an unprecedented standoff between the Pentagon and America's top newsrooms, nearly every major media organization from the New York Times, the Washington Post to cnn, the Atlantic, and even far right wing conservative Newsmax, they're all refusing to sign a new Defense Department policy they say muzzles journalists and violates the First Amendment. The policy introduced by Defense Secretary, excuse me, War Secretary Pete Hegseth requires reporters to agree not to seek or share any information that hasn't been pre approved by the Pentagon. Those who refuse must surrender their press badges and clear out of the building. Hecseth is a former Fox News host. He defended the move, writing that access to the building is a privilege, not a right. In rare unity, news outlets across the political spectrum called the policy an assault on free press. The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg said, this is a disaster. This is an absolutely disaster. Now, even the usually pro Trump Newsmax said it would not comply. Only one American news network signed. And this, this is just frankly pathetic. What's the real message here? Pete Hegseth says, I'm going to out dictator Donald Trump. I'm going to do what Victor Orban does and other dictators do, and I'm just going to squash the press. I'm going to tell them, you work for me. That First Amendment thing, it's in the garbage can. It's not news until I say it's news. That is Pete Hegseth's attempt at controlling the War Department and destroying democracy. Let's go a little bit deeper here. So. So again, I want to stress, this is not the liberals out to get Pete Hegseth. This is the Wall Street Journal, owned by Rupert Murdoch. This is Newsmax, owned by one of Trump's best buddies, a far right conservative TV network which I have had the, I don't know if I'd call it privilege, but I've been on that network many, many times. It's the Atlantic, it's a Guardian, it's all sorts of people doing it. The One America News Network, that's the name of it. They did say, oh, we'll sign on. Whatever you say, boss. Hegseth's quote, it's a privilege, not a right. That is absolutely backwards. Americans have the right to hear independent journalists reporting on every department of this United States government. Not just the Housing Department or the Bureau of Labor, but every department, including the war slash Defense Department. It is not a privilege. Privilege is you being appointed to that position. That's a privilege. Especially given the fact that you have by every common standard metric of the credentials needed for a job like this. You don't have any of them. Pete Hegseth, you have good hair and you're willing to praise Donald Trump. That completely summarizes and enumerates all of Pete Hegseth's qualifications for the privilege he has of serving this position. Now, others have stated quite clearly this violates our first amendment rights. Press groups say this gags Pentagon employees. I mean, this is absolutely absurd. Let's say, for example, you're a reporter and you cover the Defense Department and 10 generals come to you and say, look, the secretary of defense is drinking 29 gin and tonics every morning at breakfast. He's slurring. And I'm just saying, hypothetically, I'm not saying there's been allegations of this, but let's just say you are a reporter for the Defense Department and 10 generals who are wildly respected come to you and say, look, our secretary of defense slash war is drinking 29 gin and tonics every morning at breakfast. He's slurring his speech, he's incoherent, and he's muttering and mumbling things like, I'm going to bomb London. Never tell everybody we're going to bomb London. Wouldn't you want the defense reporters, the reporters from major media outlets who are getting this from generals to be able to write about that, to alert the world, to perhaps put pressure on the president to appoint a new secretary of defense according to the rules issued by Pete Hegsett? That wouldn't be allowed because that would be information that was not pre approved by the Defense Department. It's an absolute absurdity. And make no mistake about it, this is what wannabe dictators do. This is what happened in Hungary. This is what happens in Turkey. This is what's happened in Poland. It's certainly what's happened in Russia. I just finished watching Evita, the second half of Evita last night. This is what Peron did. You burn down La Prenza. You eliminate any media that can criticize you. This is from direct. This is on the first page of the dictator's playbook. And Pete Hegseth is like, yes, sir, I'm going to do anything I can to destroy our democracy to make it easier for dear Leader to become the supreme dictator of our land forever and ever. That is his message here. And frankly, I don't think he cares that every constitutional scholar in the world thinks it's illegal. He's playing to one person. He's playing to Dear Leader, thinking as long as I make Dear Leader happy, I got a safe job I don't have to go up to. I don't have to go back to waking up at 4am on a Saturday morning to work and host the Fox News. I can have this pretend job where I get to walk around in tanks and look cool and tough and everyone salute me and kiss my. You know what? I don't want to give up this job. So if he says I have to destroy the Constitution, the First Amendment, destroy the concept of journalism, I'll do it. If he says I've got to start arresting Pentagon reporters for doing their job, well, I'll do that too. If I got to put him in prison, I'll do that too. That seems to be his attitude, and it's frankly bizarre. It's un American. And maybe he can get away with it short term, but at some point people are going to wake up and you can discount Chuck Schumer, you can discount the MSNBC commentators if you want to. You can discount Centra, you can discount Never Trumpers, you can discount a sane, sensible centrist like me. But are you really going to discount the Wall Street Journal and Newsmax who've said this is too much even for us? I don't think so. I don't think that's there's only so much cognitive dissonance that can fit in any one brain or partial brain.
