Hegseth’s Fiery Response to Kelly’s Kimmel Appearance Ignites Backlash, Exposing Tensions in Trump’s Defense Orbit

By Helene Cooper and Michael M. Grynbaum Washington — Nov. 30, 2025

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the Fox News firebrand whose combative style has defined President Donald J. Trump’s Pentagon, spiraled into a public meltdown on Sunday after Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., used a prime-time slot on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” to eviscerate him as “totally unqualified” and a mere “yes-man” to the commander in chief. In a blistering monologue laced with barbs at Mr. Trump’s military leadership, Mr. Kelly — a retired Navy captain and combat veteran whose wife, former Rep. Gabby Giffords, survived an assassination attempt — amplified a viral video urging troops to defy illegal orders, framing Mr. Hegseth’s retaliatory probe as a desperate bid for White House favor. Mr. Hegseth’s furious rebuttal on X, calling Mr. Kelly a “seditious clown” and renewing threats of a court-martial, has sent Mar-a-Lago into a tailspin, with aides leaking concerns over the optics of a secretary of defense feuding with late-night TV — a spectacle that risks alienating military families and independents ahead of the 2026 midterms.

The confrontation erupted on Wednesday’s edition of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” where Mr. Kelly, 61, appeared to promote his memoir on spaceflight and resilience but pivoted to the escalating clash over a 90-second video he co-produced with five fellow Democratic congressional veterans. Titled “Don’t Give Up the Ship,” the clip — invoking a War of 1812 rallying cry — reminded service members of their Uniform Code of Military Justice duty to refuse unlawful directives, amid reports of extralegal U.S. drone strikes in the Caribbean targeting suspected Tren de Aragua gang vessels. “The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution,” the lawmakers intoned, a message Mr. Trump branded “seditious behavior, punishable by death” on Truth Social.

Mr. Hegseth, 45, whose Senate confirmation squeaked through 51-49 amid allegations of sexual misconduct and alcohol-fueled lapses he has denied, fired back on X the next day, dubbing the group the “Seditious Six” and announcing a Pentagon review of Mr. Kelly — the only participant still recallable to active duty due to his pension status — for “serious allegations of misconduct” that could undermine morale. On Kimmel’s show, aired Tuesday but taped earlier, Mr. Kelly dismantled the threat with veteran poise, his voice steady under studio lights. “I sit on the committee that had to confirm him, so I know a little about his background. He’s totally unqualified,” Mr. Kelly said, pausing for applause. “And from what I can tell… he just wants to please the president.” He recounted learning of Mr. Trump’s execution call from a late-night alert, quipping: “I was with Sen. [Jacky] Rosen when my phone blew up — thought it was aliens, but nope, just the commander in chief threatening to hang me.” The segment, viewed by 2.8 million and clipped into 10 million X views, ended with Mr. Kelly vowing: “I’m not backing down.”

Mr. Hegseth’s meltdown commenced within hours, a midday X thread that spiraled into 15 posts by evening, viewed over 5 million times. “Captain Kelly, not only did your sedition video undercut good order & discipline… you can’t even display your uniform correctly. Your medals are out of order & rows reversed. When/if recalled, it’ll start with a uniform inspection,” he wrote, attaching a nitpicking photo of Mr. Kelly’s display. Escalating, he branded the senator a “traitor” and renewed court-martial warnings: “Enough. This clown show ends now — justice for our warriors.” The barrage, laced with Fox-style bravado, drew cheers from MAGA accounts but swift condemnation from veterans’ groups like the V.F.W., which called it “a disgrace to the uniform.”

At Mar-a-Lago, the reaction was volcanic. Mr. Trump, fresh from a donor brunch, reportedly exploded during a call with Mr. Hegseth, demanding: “Pete, you’re killing us — late-night’s eating our lunch!” Aides described a “full crisis huddle” in the Florida estate’s war room, where Chief of Staff Susie Wiles urged the defense secretary to “stand down” amid leaks of his unsecured Signal chats sharing strike plans with family — a scandal revived by the Kimmel optics. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt issued a terse defense: “Secretary Hegseth is a warrior protecting our military from radical interference — Kelly’s Kimmel stunt is the real humiliation.” But privately, Trump allies fretted: A Republican pollster’s memo, circulated Sunday, showed Mr. Hegseth’s approval among active-duty personnel dipping to 45 percent, with independents citing the feud as “embarrassing chaos.”

The live-TV humiliation has layered fresh scrutiny on Mr. Hegseth’s tenure, a whirlwind of purges and provocations since his January swearing-in. A Princeton grad and Army National Guard veteran, he parlayed Fox rants against “woke” generals into the cabinet post, but gaffes abound: A February speech decrying “fat admirals” drew bipartisan mockery, with Mr. Kimmel quipping: “Our secretary of defense is defenseless.” April’s Signal leak — discussing unclassified Caribbean ops with his wife and brother — prompted cybersecurity probes, while October’s “fat generals” fitness mandate alienated brass, per Pentagon leaks to CNN. “SNL” skewered him in its season premiere cold open, with Colin Jost as Mr. Hegseth ranting about Trump’s FCC war on late-night, warning: “Jimmy Kimmel fought for free speech? I’ll fight for free hot dogs — as long as they’re not woke.”

Mr. Kimmel, whose own show endured a September suspension over Charlie Kirk assassination jabs, milked the drama in his monologue: “Pete Hegseth threatens a Navy SEAL on my show? That’s like Trump auditing his own taxes — all bluster, no bite.” The host played a supercut of Mr. Hegseth’s X rants, overlaying medal nitpicks with clips of his beer-drinking Fox segments, drawing 3.1 million viewers and #PentagonPeteFail trending with 1.2 million mentions. Late-night peers piled on: Seth Meyers quipped, “Hegseth’s uniform inspection? Coming soon: Audits for bad hair days.” Stephen Colbert, podcast-bound post-cancellation, tweeted: “Kelly 1, Hegseth 0 — but Trump’s still undefeated at golf.”

The feud has bipartisan ripples. Democrats, led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., scheduled Dec. 5 hearings on “weaponizing the U.C.M.J. for revenge,” subpoenaing Mr. Hegseth. House Oversight Ranking Member Jamie Raskin, D-Md., co-signed a bipartisan letter with Sen. Susan Collins, R-Me., decrying the threats as “an assault on oaths.” Republicans showed strain: Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., urged “cooler heads” on Fox, saying, “Pete’s passionate, but court-martials aren’t tweet fodder.” Vice President J.D. Vance defended on X: “Kelly’s sedition — Hegseth’s standing tall.” Yet a G.O.P. aide leaked: “Trump’s livid; this makes us look like bullies, not bosses.”

For Mr. Kelly, the Kimmel spot burnished his brand as a unflappable patriot, up for re-election in 2028. His Phoenix town hall Saturday drew 3,000 chanting “Don’t give up the ship!,” tying the probe to Mr. Hegseth’s looser Indo-Pacific rules. “This isn’t about me — it’s about troops following law, not loyalty tests,” he said. Veterans’ advocates, from the American Legion to Gold Star families, backed him, warning Mr. Trump’s rhetoric erodes enlistment, down 15 percent since January.

Mr. Hegseth, retreating to a Quantico briefing, posted a defiant video Sunday: “Kelly’s Kimmel circus won’t distract from our wins — stronger military, safer America.” But with midterms looming and the Caribbean ops under I.G. scrutiny, the meltdown underscores Mr. Trump’s revenge blueprint perils: Loyalty breeds blunders. Historians liken it to McCarthy’s Red Scare self-immolation. “Hegseth’s fury isn’t strength — it’s fragility,” said Julian Zelizer, a Princeton historian. On X, @OANN amplified the clash with 86,000 views, while critics like @Swohtz decried it as “disgraceful.”

As the holiday haze lifts, Mar-a-Lago’s frenzy signals deeper rifts: A secretary humiliated on TV, a president erupting in echoes. In Washington’s arena, live-TV takedowns don’t just sting — they scar.