Pentagon under fire? Pete Hegseth declares war on red tape amid rising threats and hostile forces

US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth issued his strongest critique yet of the Pentagon’s internal structure, calling for a complete transformation of what he described as a “bloated, outdated” bureaucracy that undermines American defence capabilities. Speaking in Washington, Hegseth warned that the Department of Defense has become “one of the world’s last bastions of central planning.” Hegseth called for an “all-out campaign” to streamline processes, eliminate unproductive work, and move resources “from the bureaucracy to the battlefield.”