‘Here’s the Problem With Trump’: Pete Hegseth Torched Trump Over Illegal Orders Bluster in 2016

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks as President Donald Trump holds a cabinet meeting at the White House, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth torched then-presidential candidate Donald Trump over his insistence that members of the military would follow outlandish — and even illegal — orders he might issue after taking office back in 2016, according to a new KFile report from CNN’s Andrew Kaczynski.

In appearances on Fox News Channel and Fox Business Network, Hegseth stated that, “You’re not just gonna follow that order if it’s unlawful,” and “The military’s not gonna follow illegal orders,” when asked about Trump’s claims that they would. Hegseth made similar comments during a speaking engagement in April.

After Trump reaffirmed his position during a March 2016 Fox News debate, Hegseth was more cutting.

“Here’s the problem with Trump,” remarked Hegseth during an appearance on Megyn Kelly’s Fox show. “He says, ‘Go ahead and kill the family. Go ahead and torture. Go ahead and go further than waterboarding.’”

“What happens when people follow those orders, or don’t follow them? It’s not clear that Donald Trump will have their back,” he continued. “Donald Trump is oftentimes about Donald Trump. And so you can’t; if you’re not changing the law and you’re just saying it, you create even more ambiguity.”

“What Donald Trump is doing here, though, creates more complications, I think, on the backend for a lot of our folks,” concluded Hegseth.

The string of comments stands in stark contrast to those he’s made since six congressional Democrats released a video accusing the Trump administration of “pitting our uniformed military and intelligence community professionals against American citizens,” and urging the two groups to “refuse illegal orders.”

“The video made by the ‘Seditious Six’ was despicable, reckless, and false. Encouraging our warriors to ignore the orders of their Commanders undermines every aspect of ‘good order and discipline.’ Their foolish screed sows doubt and confusion — which only puts our warriors in danger,” wrote Hegseth in an X post addressing the controversy. “Five of the six individuals in that video do not fall under @DeptofWar jurisdiction (one is CIA and four are former military but not ‘retired’, so they are no longer subject to UCMJ). However, Mark Kelly (retired Navy Commander) is still subject to UCMJ—and he knows that. As was announced, the Department is reviewing his statements and actions, which were addressed directly to all troops while explicitly using his rank and service affiliation—lending the appearance of authority to his words. Kelly’s conduct brings discredit upon the armed forces and will be addressed appropriately.”

For his part, Trump has suggested that the video constituted “SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!”

In more measured commentary, other critics of the video, such as retired Army Major General James “Spider” Marks, have described it as “an insult to our chain of command.”

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