From Daily Mail:
Pete Hegseth gets brutal ultimatum from Congress over 'war crime' video as Pentagon chief's travel budget is throttled
Jon Michael Rasasch, Daily Mail, December 8/9, 2025
Congress is threatening Pentagon boss Pete Hegseth to release the unedited video of a September 2 US military strike, or else lost his travel budget.
Hegseth is under scrutiny over a follow-up strike on two survivors following an attack on an alleged Venezuelan 'narco-terrorist' boat in the Caribbean on September 2.
The Pentagon boss, who ordered the strikes, admits he did not watch the full operation live on video but that he fully backs the operation's commander, Admiral Frank Bradley, and his decision to order the second strike.
Bradley was on Capitol Hill last week to brief some members of Congress on the strike.
He also showed them video of the operation, which left Democratic lawmakers with further questions while Republicans claimed it vindicated Hegseth and the Pentagon.
Now, Congress is working to withhold Hegseth's travel budget until the full, unedited videos of that operation and other drug-boat strikes are handed over to lawmakers.
The final draft of the Pentagon funding bill was released on Sunday and contains a provision threatening the secretary's budget should the video remain secret.
The provision demands that the Department of War 'provides to the Committees on Armed Services of the House of Representatives and the Senate unedited video of strikes conducted against designated terrorist organizations in the area of responsibility of the United States Southern Command.'
The final draft of a Pentagon funding bill threatens to strip Secretary of War Pete Hegseth of his full travel budget if he does not release the unedited video of a September 2 strike on alleged Venezuelan narco-terrorists to lawmakers
Trump said last week he would have 'no problem' with the video being released. He backtracked on Monday, however, saying he would defer to Hegseth on whether or not to release the video
If the video is not released, then Hegseth could see his travel budget cut by 25 percent, according to the bill's text.
The provision also requires the Pentagon to release a report on the lessons learned from the Ukraine-Russia war before releasing the full travel budget.
'Pete Hegseth is a war criminal and should be fired immediately,' Democratic Senator Ed Markey said last month.
The funding bill is expected to be passed by the House and the Senate this week.
President Donald Trump signaled his openness to releasing the operation's videolast week when pressed by reporters.
At the time, Trump said he would have 'no problem' with the video being released.
However, the president seemed to backtrack on Monday, saying he would defer to Hegseth on what should and should not be released.
'Whatever Hegseth decides is ok with me,' he said.
Over the weekend, Hegseth said the Pentagon is reviewing whether it would release the unedited video of the controversial strike
'Every boat we knock out of the water, every boat we save 25,000 American lives. That was a boat loaded up with drugs. I saw the video. They were trying to turn the boat back to where it could float. And we didn't want to see that.'
So far, the US military has conducted over 20 operations in the Caribbean against alleged narco-terrorists that have left at least 80 dead.
Hegseth, for his part, was noncommittal when asked if he would release the video.
'We're reviewing that right now,' he said when asked at the Reagan National Defense Forum on Saturday.
The Pentagon did not immediately respond to the Daily Mail's request for comment.
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