Insiders also claimed Hegseth played a significant role in securing the Air Force member’s interview.
According to CNN, Hegseth and appointees in his department pushed for two crew members to participate. Ultimately, only one of the two men in the April incident agreed to the conversation after both expressed concerns in participating, sources said.
Hegseth reportedly held a private meeting with the servicemen, swaying one to appear without identifying himself. The individuals’ identities remain unknown.
Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell later denied the claim.
“This entire story is a complete lie,” he said in a statement. “The decision to participate in the interview was each pilot’s alone – because it is their story.”
“As CNN notes, one pilot decided to participate and one did not. Additionally, the Department took great care to ensure operational security, sources, and methods were protected,” he continued. “To suggest otherwise is to denigrate every member of our military who participated in and supported the interview.”
Allegedly, even higher-ranking members of the military were worried the segment could pose a risk to military tactics – but critics claimed Hegseth was primarily focused on shaping a narrative around the United States’ aggression in Iran.
General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff allegedly expressed those reservations. However, a spokesman for Caine, Joseph Holstead, noted he would not “comment on agenda-driven sources, anonymous sources’ characterizations, other than to reiterate the story here remains that the Joint Force will do everything possible to ensure no one gets left behind.”