Hegseth Films USS Boxer Workout With Wife as Pentagon Role Questions Persist
Updated
Updated · The Daily Beast · May 29
Hegseth Films USS Boxer Workout With Wife as Pentagon Role Questions Persist
3 articles · Updated · The Daily Beast · May 29
USS Boxer footage posted by Pete Hegseth showed the defense secretary exercising with sailors and Marines alongside his wife Jennifer Rauchet, a former Fox News producer with no military service.
Defense Department photos and Fox News video amplified the event, the latest in a string of Hegseth fitness posts since he joined Donald Trump’s cabinet.
Rauchet’s appearance renewed scrutiny over her Pentagon access because she has no formal department role and the White House has not confirmed whether she holds a security clearance.
That scrutiny has deepened after reports she attended meetings with lawmakers and foreign officials, including a March session with British Defense Secretary John Healey on sensitive security matters.
The workout also lands amid broader complaints from military officials that Hegseth devotes excessive time to public-image stunts and allegations he shared Yemen strike details in a Signal chat including Rauchet.
Did sharing military strike details on a private app create a new security risk for US forces?
How will the US ensure accountability for civilian deaths after dismantling its protection office?