Elizabeth Warren Gets In Heated Battle With Pete Hegseth Over Stock Trading: ‘You Have Not Given Us a Response!’

Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) threw down with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on the question of insider trading, and snapped, “You have not given us a response!”

Hegseth testified before the Senate Armed Services on Thursday to discuss the ongoing Iran War, address staff changes and justify the Department of Defense’s budget.

Warren pressed Hegseth on the alleged prevalence of insider trading related to the Iran War within President Donald Trump’s administration, citing reports that there has been a pattern between a surge in oil bets, a Trump post on Truth Social regarding the conflict and then a “huge shift in oil prices in the space of minutes” with “insiders making out like bandits using secret information about the war.”

Hegseth skirted around her question as to whether he had an explanation beyond insider trading, insisting all the work done by the Department of Defense has been “completely above board” while defending its “operational security.”

“We’re focused on our mission of executing for the American people,” he said. “What happens in betting markets is not something we’re involved in.”

Warren persisted, rewording her question, “Have you taken any steps to deal with insider trading out of your office?”

Hegseth began to answer — “I mean, we would ensure at every level that inside information is properly safeguarded” — as Warren spoke over him.

“I take that as a no,” she said before adding, “Obviously you are not” regarding Hegseth’s safeguard comment.

Next, the senator turned her attention to Hegseth’s personal financial affairs, referring to reports that his broker reportedly sought to invest millions of dollars in major defense contractors during the run-up to the Iran war.

This time, it was Hegseth’s turn to cut her off:

That entire story is false, has been from the beginning and was made up out of whole cloth. Anybody that looks at it sees how it was worded from the beginning to make it look like I was involved in something I had nothing to do and never have. So, any insinuation that I’ve ever profited other than serving this nation — what I give, what you give, what others give, I’m not looking for money, I don’t do it for money, I don’t do it for profit, I don’t do it for stocks. And that’s part of the reason why I’m able to be effective in this job, because no one owns me! No one owns this department, no one owns this president, and we can execute for the American people, and we do.

Warren cited the law which prevents the Secretary of Defense from owning stocks in the top 10 defense contractors included in the defense fund, and claimed she and other senators sent Hegesth a letter regarding the matter with “detailed questions”: “You have not given us a response!”

She decided to get the answer from him directly, asking, “Did you, through your broker at Morgan Stanley or otherwise, seek to invest in defense-related funds right before Trump started the Iran War?”

“I’ll give it to you as a big, fat negative,” he said.

When Warren asked if his broker gets his signoff before making investments, Hegseth doubled down, “Of course. I don’t know what you’re looking for, but you ain’t gonna find it.”

Watch above via C-SPAN.

New: The Mediaite One-Sheet "Newsletter of Newsletters"
Your daily summary and analysis of what the many, many media newsletters are saying and reporting. Subscribe now!