Pete Hegseth, already under fire for leaking strike plans in a group chat that inadvertently included a journalist, reportedly brought his wife into at least two high-level military meetings where sensitive discussions took place.

The meetings – one at the Pentagon with UK Secretary of Defense John Healey and another at NATO headquarters in Brussels – occurred as allies were recalibrating their approach to the war in Ukraine and shortly after the US abruptly halted military intelligence sharing with Kyiv. 

Both gatherings involved sensitive, potentially classified discussions about the future of Western coordination in Ukraine and other regional threats.

The Defense Secretary’s wife, Jennifer Hegseth, is a former producer with Fox News and not a government employee. She does not appear on any formal organizational chart at the Department of Defense.

Yet photos and eyewitness accounts confirm she was present in secure meeting rooms where the future of NATO military coordination, classified aid to Ukraine, and a reorganization of strategic posturing in Europe were being hashed out behind closed doors.

The revelation comes at the end of a week already steeped in chaos, recriminations, and a mounting crisis of credibility inside the Trump administration’s national security apparatus.

One of the meeting occurred earlier this month on March 6 as Defense Secretary Hegseth walked into a high-level bilateral meeting with the Healey. 

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth brought his wife into at least two high-level military meetings where sensitive discussions took place. Jennifer Hegseth is pictured sitting behind her husband on March 6 during discussions with the UK Defense Secretary John Healey

 Pete Hegseth is seen during his confirmation hearing on January 14, as wife Jennifer, looks on

Married in 2019, Jennifer has appeared alongside him frequently – first during his controversial confirmation process, and now as an unofficial fixture in the halls of defense power. The pair are seen walking through the Hart Senate Office building in Washington, DC

Behind him, camera-ready, poised, and wearing a blue blazer, was his wife. 

She was not on the official attendee list, according to two people familiar with the planning and she was not introduced. 

Jennifer Hegseth simply took a seat behind her husband, in full view of military brass, intelligence liaisons, and diplomatic envoys.

According to two individuals who were either present or directly briefed, the meeting’s agenda included explaining America’s rationale for halting intelligence sharing with Ukraine – a decision that sent shockwaves through Europe—and laying the groundwork for bilateral contingency planning between NATO’s top military powers. 

Admiral Tony Radakin, the UK’s Chief of the Defense Staff, was in the room. 

Those present say the subject matter was ‘sensitive at minimum, potentially classified at points.’

‘If you are going to discuss top secret, national security issues, you have to be very selective. What’s the relevancy of the person you are inviting?’ said former Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel to the Wall Street Journal, speaking in general terms to underscore the gravity of such settings.

He added, ‘It sends a message to the department: Why is the secretary doing that? It puts staff on guard over what to say and to whom. It introduces an issue you don’t need to introduce.’

The presence of Jennifer Hegseth at high-level meetings is not the only eyebrow-raising element. Hegseth’s brother, Philip Hegseth, a podcast producer with ties to the conservative think tank Hudson Institute, has also become a frequent figure in the secretary’s entourage. He is seen far left in a baseball cap

The Hegseth brothers are currently on a tour of US bases and allied outposts in the Asia-Pacific. Pete Hegseth’s brother, Philip, is seen in a photo taken last month

The presence of Jennifer Hegseth at high-level meetings is particularly eyebrow-raising

Jennifer Rauchet is seen left, while Pete Hegseth’s brother Phil Hegseth can be seen smiling behind him while appearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee for his confirmation hearing to be Defense Secretary, at the Capitol in Washington in January

 Defense Pete Hegseth welcomed British Defense Secretary John Healey to the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, earlier this month

Britain’s Defense Secretary John Healey responds to questions from reporters during a meeting with Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth at the Pentagon earlier in March

The Department of Defense has refused to confirm whether Jennifer Hegseth holds any security clearance.

The revelation lands atop an already spiraling controversy involving disclosure of top-secret operational plans during a March 15 airstrike against Houthi militants in Yemen. 

Hegseth, along with several high-ranking administration officials, used a Signal group chat to coordinate the timing, assets, and execution of the attack. 

The chat included Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, who had been mistakenly added.

Initially, Hegseth denied any classified details were shared but Goldberg has since released the entire transcript of the chat. 

It showed, unequivocally, that Hegseth had texted the precise timing of F-18 launches, the types of MQ-9 drones to be used, and the moment ‘the first bombs will definitely drop’ – a full 31 minutes before the operation began.

‘Centcom are a GO for mission launch,’ he wrote. ‘F-18s in the air by 3:31. MQ-9s sweeping east. Strike package complete. First bombs will definitely drop at 4:02. Godspeed to our Warriors.’

The messages stunned defense analysts and appalled members of Congress. 

‘This is a textbook breach of operational security,’ said one Senate staffer with knowledge of the Armed Services Committee’s ongoing review. ‘You don’t message war plans in a group chat that includes a journalist. This is Defense 101.’

Senators Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Jack Reed (D-R.I.), the chairman and ranking member of the Armed Services Committee, have formally requested an investigation by the Pentagon’s inspector general into both the leak and Hegseth’s handling of classified materials.

The presence of Jennifer Hegseth at high-level meetings is not the only eyebrow-raising element. 

Pete Hegseth and his wife Jennifer walk to the House Chamber before Donald Trump addresses a joint session of Congress at the Capitol earlier this month

Jennifer Hegseth was also present at a meeting where the future of NATO military coordination, classified aid to Ukraine, and a reorganization of strategic posturing in Europe were being hashed out behind closed doors

Her brother-in-law, Philip Hegseth, a podcast producer with ties to the conservative think tank Hudson Institute,  has also become a frequent figure in the secretary’s entourage. 

According to a Pentagon spokesperson, he recently joined the Department of Homeland Security as a liaison to Defense, though his qualifications for the role remain unclear.

Philip traveled with Secretary Hegseth to Guantanamo Bay and was recently photographed at the Pentagon during a meeting with Irish MMA fighter Conor McGregor. 

The Hegseth brothers are currently on a tour of US bases and allied outposts in the Asia-Pacific.

Jennifer Hegseth’s presence in the national security orbit is partly rooted in her past at Fox News, where she was a producer for Fox & Friends and later an executive at Fox Nation. She met Pete during his time as a co-host. 

They married in 2019, and since then, she has appeared alongside him frequently -first during his controversial confirmation process, and now as an unofficial fixture in the halls of defense power.

Photographs from Capitol Hill show her seated beside him during private meetings with senators – an unusual protocol violation, according to Hill staffers

In February, Jennifer Hegseth was again once present, this time at NATO headquarters in Brussels, during a gathering of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group along with her husband

Photographs from Capitol Hill show her seated beside him during private meetings with senators – an unusual protocol violation, according to Hill staffers. 

‘It made some members uncomfortable,’ said one aide familiar with the confirmation meetings. ‘How do you ask about infidelity allegations when his wife is sitting there?’

In February, Jennifer Hegseth was again present, this time at NATO headquarters in Brussels, during a gathering of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group. 

Such meetings are typically reserved for officials with clearances and state representatives and are usually closed-door sessions where nations disclose contributions and confidential logistical plans for weapons shipments and aid delivery.

‘She was there. It was odd,’ said one NATO official. ‘Some didn’t know who she was. Others noticed and said nothing.’

It remains unclear whether Jennifer spoke during the meetings or merely observed.  

Her presence, however, was noted by several participants and has since become a point of concern for allied diplomats who are increasingly wary of information security protocols in Washington. 

Jennifer Hegseth’s presence has been noted by several participants and has since become a point of concern for allied diplomats who are increasingly wary of information security protocols in Washington

Neither Hegseth nor the White House has offered an official explanation.

The president has publicly backed Hegseth, calling him ‘a warrior who gets the job done,’ but inside the West Wing, aides say the situation is becoming untenable. 

Aides have described FBI Director Kash Patel as ‘furious’ over the Signal chat fiasco. One official said bluntly, ‘This might be it.’

It’s not the first time a Trump administration official has brought a spouse too close to the flame. 

Susan Pompeo, wife of former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, was criticized for wielding informal influence at the CIA and State Department. But never, say former officials, has a spouse actually been seated inside a military strategy meeting.

‘That would be strange,’ said one former Obama official to WSJ. ‘And would not make any sense.’