The MeidasTouch Podcast - Trump Witnesses Clobbered on Live TV from Cross-Exam

Episode Date: June 19, 2025

MeidasTouch host Ben Meiselas reports on Democrats grilling Trump cabinet members like Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth who expose how unqualified and dangerous they are on under the intense cross-examination. Head to https://ShopMDHearing.com and use code MEIDAS to get get our $297 when you buy a PAIR offer. Visit https://meidasplus.com for more! Remember to subscribe to ALL the MeidasTouch Network Podcasts: MeidasTouch: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/meidastouch-podcast Legal AF: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/legal-af MissTrial: https://meidasnews.com/tag/miss-trial The PoliticsGirl Podcast: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-politicsgirl-podcast The Influence Continuum: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-influence-continuum-with-dr-steven-hassan Mea Culpa with Michael Cohen: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/mea-culpa-with-michael-cohen The Weekend Show: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/the-weekend-show Burn the Boats: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/burn-the-boats Majority 54: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/majority-54 Political Beatdown: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/political-beatdown On Democracy with FP Wellman: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/on-democracy-with-fpwellman Uncovered: https://www.meidastouch.com/tag/maga-uncovered Coalition of the Sane: https://meidasnews.com/tag/coalition-of-the-sane Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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him, you don't have any balls, you pathetic, vile human being. You Democrats were not holding back at all. Let me show you that full exchange when Democratic Senator Slotkin looks at Hegseth and tells him that he does not have balls. Play this clip. Giving that order to your predecessor, to a Republican Secretary of Defense, who I give a lot of credit to because he didn't accept the order. He had more guts and balls than you because he said, I'm not going to send in the uniformed military to do something that I know in my gut isn't right. He was asked to shoot at their legs. He wrote that in his book. That's not hearsay. Here was another part of that incredible cross-examination by Democratic Senator Slotkin. Let's play it.

They can arrest all day long. That's their job. Do they have the ability, the uniformed military, to arrest and detain protesters currently today? It's a yes or no thing, authority. It's sort of amusing the extent to which the speculation is out there. These troops are given very clear orders. Then what is the order? Then list it out for us.

B-Man, list it out. Did you authorize them to detain or arrest? That is a fundamental issue of democracy. I'm not trying to be a snot here. I'm just trying to get the actual, did you authorize them to do that? All of these orders and what they're sent there to do are public.

They are there to- Okay, so say it. So say it, yes or no. I'd like to. Please, yes or no. As I've said time and time again through interruption, they're there to protect law enforcement. Do they have the ability to arrest? Who are trying to do their job deporting illegals who were allowed in by the previous administration.

So they cannot arrest and detain citizens of the United States, the uniformed military. As we've stated, if necessary in their own self-defense, they could temporarily detain and hand over to ICE. But there's no arresting going on. And you know this better than... You're trying to play political games. There's no arresting of U.S. personnel. Have you authorized the U.S. military

against members of the protest? Have you authorized U.S. military cyber tools to investigate people participating in these protests? Yes or no certainly in no way that I'd be aware of okay that's good I love that answer that's great have you given next you have Democratic Senator Hirono and here she's cross-examining Pete Hegsif and she asks if ordered by the president to shoot peaceful protesters in the legs, would you carry it out? I think as

Julia Davis says, can you just answer no, but notice that Hegseth refuses to answer. Here, play this clip. If ordered by the president, I'm going to ask you once again, to shoot peaceful protesters in the legs, would you carry out such an order from the president? Senator, as I've said before, of course, I reject the premise of your question and the characterization that I would be given or are given on lawful orders. It's all meant to attempt to smear the commander in chief.

Considering that the president in his first term actually ordered such a thing, it is not a premise that you can reject. He can order, do such a thing. It is not a premise that you can reject. He can order, do the same thing. So you're again, I think you would just follow what the president wants you to do. Let's face it. Next up you have Democratic Senator Tim Kaine. Here he does cross examining Pete Hegseth about changing the name of American military bases back to the names of Confederate traders and Senator Kaine has the family members the descendants of some of the people who the bases are now named after

Who are going to have their names removed to bring back in the Confederate traders here play this clip Civil War Why did you decide that these four Patriots were not worthy enough to have their names on a base Well senator as you know this was never about the names of the bases they were renamed to so you know so you know challenge All of these is you don't worry all bases to their original name and better and not about erasing Okay, you wanted to you don't care about their military record. You wanted to restore the Confederate names. When you called the Gregg family to tell them that their dad's name was no longer going

to be on the base, what was their reaction? Senator the Army notified them of that. You didn't call any of the families, and I've spoken with the families, and the families were called by the press. That's how they learned about this. They learned about it from the press. You didn't call the Barfit family, the Gregg family, and you didn't call the Adams family.

I told the families I'd ask you about this today. In fact, two of General Gregg's granddaughters, Avery and Sydney, are right here in the audience, and I want to ask you this as I close. While you announced that these brave men and women's names would be stripped from the Virginia bases, no orders to that effect have been received by the base commanders.

In light of the patriotic service of Van Barfoot, Arthur Gregg, Charity Adams, and Mary Walker, I'd like to ask you simply not to issue the orders changing the names of these Virginia bases. These families, my Commonwealth, are very proud of these heroes, very satisfied with these names, and ask you not to change them.

Will you honor these exemplary patriots and keep their worthy names in places on the bases they loved and where they served? Senator, we very much thank and appreciate them for their service and we'll find ways to recognize them, but the orders will soon be going to those bases to change the names back to the original name that never should have been changed.

But you have the power to not send those orders. They haven't gone out yet, correct? Thank you, Jeff. Senator, your time has expired. Senator Cramp. Next up in this cross-examination of Hegseth by Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, Hegseth admits that the Trump regime will not be following orders of any court other than the Supreme

Court, thus they will not be following district court and court of appeals orders if you listen to what he's saying. Here, play this clip. How many troops can you deploy domestically before you start to cut into our readiness internationally? As I said, previous administrations deployed our National Guard all around the globe in numbers far beyond what we were capable of supporting. So limited contingencies inside the United States to protect federal law enforcement

is doable. If the Supreme Court orders you to remove troops from American city streets, will you do so? Can you repeat the question, please? Yes. If the Supreme Court orders you to remove troops from American cities, will you do so? As I've said, Senator, I don't believe district courts should determine national security policy, but if the Supreme Court rules on a topic, we will abide by that. Here's the cross-exam by Democratic Senator Peters of Hegsith. Let's play it.

... beaming military actions in Yemen. So given your focus on accountability, how will you demonstrate this accountability to the men and women in the US military if the Inspector General finds that you improperly disclosed information. That assessment is pending at this time. That is a hypothetical question, but the gentleman's time is expired. I think your answer is clear. You are not gonna be held accountable.

Thank you very much, Senator Peters. Senator Mullen. Talk about accountability. I wonder who was held accountable for the disastrous withdrawal out of Afghanistan. Yeah, so that would be a no right there. Here is Democratic Senator Duckworth laying into Hegseth. Let's play it. Colleague from Oklahoma. I believe the Secretary of Defense has just responded last week and admitted that the

$1 billion mission that he led against the Houthis who do not have a Navy has not restored the transit of US flag commercial vessels through the Red Sea and in fact has resulted in the loss of two F-18 Hornets to the tune of $60 million a piece as well as I believe the last count was seven Reaper drones to the tune of another $200 million a piece, as well as, I believe the last count was seven Reaper drones to the tune of another $200 million. You are blowing through money like my fellow cadets and I did in our first Liberty after basic camp. Luckily, I didn't end up with a questionable tattoo.

Your failure as Mr. Secretary since you've taken office has been staggering. You sent classified operational information over signal to chest thump in front of your wife, who by the way has no security clearance, risking service member lives in the process. You blew the one million, one billion dollar fight against the Houthis, whom again, as my colleague says, has no Navy, and yet you lost all of those aircraft. You've created such a hostile command environment that no one wants to serve as your chief of staff or work with you in other senior DOD leadership roles. But what we should all be talking about more than all of this is that you have an unjustified, un-American misuse of the military in American cities, pulling resources and attention away

from core missions to the detriment of the country, the warfighters, and yes, the warfighting that you claim to love. I don't know if this is because you are too inexperienced and incompetent to understand the real threats facing our country, or if it's because you are just an unqualified yes man who can't tell the president how to keep Americans safe. You are focusing on renaming bases for Confederate generals. You said just now to Senator King that to a man and to a woman, we would rather be associated with the old

Confederate names. Well, I am one of those women. I served at Fort Rucker, Alabama, a base that was named for a traitor who took arms against the United States of America, led troops who killed Americans. It was renamed from Mike Novosel, a Medal of Honor recipient, who in his citation for the Medal of Honor includes that he saved 29 American lives to include hovering backwards in a helicopter towards an enemy bunker where a wounded American was laying and saved that and saved that person including after being taken fire himself. I know a little

something about what it takes to fly a helicopter when you've been hit by enemy fire. That was heroic. I'd rather be associated with Mike Novosel than a failed Confederate traitor. I don't know whether you are inexperienced or too incompetent, but I wonder when you will actually focus on our nation's war fighting mission. We know that California is just a deliberate systematic, political and dangerous campaign led by you. We should not be using our mayoral military to pay cops against Americans.

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lethality against U.S. cities when all of those national guardsmen and Marines have protected, have conducted themselves with the utmost of professionalism, defending our federal agents, Americans, who deserve to be able to do their job, have a different view after the previous administration, claiming my time, million, million, million to cross our border. Listen to your rhetorical responses. I would like to have a professional response that I would expect from somebody who is the Secretary of Defense.

Going back to Democratic Senator Duckworth right here. Instead of patrolling American neighborhoods and standing in front of federal buildings, they should be rehearsing call for fire missions. We have local police who can stand in front of those federal buildings. And the list of distractions goes on. You are encouraging the DOD workforce to go work for DHS in increasing numbers. You're pulling the military away from facing foreign enemies who literally say things like death to America. And you're putting troops with weapons aimed at Americans.

Mr. Secretary, let the military get back to its real job. Stop fording them to do DHSs. And if you want to be a DHS secretary, maybe you can apply for that job when you're fired from this one, but due to your incompetence. This interest time is expired. Democratic Senator Rosen right here wants to know why is it that right-wing extremist conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer had a say in the firing of General Howe and why and what went down.

And notice Hegseth refuses to answer. And then he has the audacity to tell the Democratic senator your time is up and she's like you don't tell me when my time is up the hell are you you pathetic individual play this clip I'm gonna move on just general Hawk the sudden inexplicable dismissal of general Hawk he serves both director of the National Security Agency commander of US cybercom is deeply concerning raises significant questions about the decision-making process, its potential consequences.

Public reports indicate that the removal of General Hawk, who has served his country proudly, has been influenced by social media influencer and influencer, a personality on social media, Laura Loomer, spreads conspiracy theories. She's been denounced even by Republicans. And the ideas that any leaders within our agencies responsible for our nation's security, somebody would be dismissed based on the advice of a social media influencer. It's alarming to say the least, it's surely not how we should be running our military. So were you consulted regarding General Hoxton's dismissal, yes or no?

Well, Senator, I would not advise believing everything you read in the media. And I'm consulted on every single decision. I'm the decision maker for the department. And we all serve as a pleasure of the president. And we have the prerogative to make those decisions the best for the country. Did you personally approve Mr. Hawks' dismissal,

yes or no? Anyone coming or going at the Defense Department, especially at that level, would ultimately be a decision made by me, and I stand behind that. So that's a yes. Did you personally relieve him? Did you personally relieve him?

Yes or no? Anyone at that level who is relieved would be relieved by the Secretary of Defense. Was there a specific justification for General Hawks' dismissal? at that level who is relieved would be relieved by the Secretary of Defense. Was there a specific justification for General Hoxsett's missile? Was there a specific justification for General Hoxsett's missile? Ma'am, we all serve at the pleasure of the President and the President deserves the type of commanders and advisors that he thinks will best equip him

to accomplish the mission. Did you discuss General Hux's missile with Laura Loomer prior to his removal? I don't discuss who I talk about anything with, but ultimately this is my decision and he serves at the pleasure of the president and that's why he's no longer there. So do you believe it's appropriate

for any social media personality to influence personnel decisions in your department? Yes or no? I believe your time is up senator. Oh, it is not up to you to tell me when my time is up Well the time and I am going to say mr Secretary, you're either feckless or complicit. You're not in control of your department. You're as unserious. It is shocking You're not combating anti-Semitism within your ranks. It's a dangerous and pivotal time in our nation's history. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

I yield back. And I don't appreciate the smirk, sir. You are the Secretary of Defense. Time of the gentlelady has expired. One more clip of Democratic Senator Rosen right here. Let's play it. So would you also agree then that anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories have no place

in our government or military? Yes or no? They should not. Thank you. So would you also agree that anyone who has posted, and I'm gonna quote, anti-Semitic conspiracy theories lifted right out of a neo-Nazi playbook, end quote, shouldn't

be anywhere near a position of power. Yes or no? Since I don't believe the characterization of many officials in the news media, I would need to see precisely what's being characterized. But generally, but generally, would you not say that if we thought something was coming out of a neo-Nazi playbook, it doesn't have any place in our Department of Defense. Now, Secretary Hegset, the quote that I just read you was referencing Ms. Kingsley Wilson, the DOD press secretary. It's a direct quote from her, who my Republican colleagues on this committee have also expressed

alarm over due to her comments. In fact, one colleague said, and I'm going to quote again, obviously I don't agree with her comments. I trust the Pentagon will address this." End quote. However, in the month since, not only have you not addressed these anti-Semitic comments, you have promoted Ms. Wilson. This seems to be at odds, honestly, with President Trump's commitment, very public commitment

to combat anti-Semitism, which you just said you two agreed with. So Secretary Hexley, given the rise in anti-Semitic violence, hate crimes in our nation, and to show that the Trump administration, the Trump administration, your administration, does have a zero tolerance policy for anti-Semitism, will you dismiss Ms. Kingsley from her role as a U.S. military spokesperson today, yes or no? Tolerance policy for anti-Semitism. Will you dismiss Ms. Kingsley from her role as a US military spokesperson today? Yes or no. Again, that's why I referenced

the context and characterization. We'll send you the quote, sir. I've worked directly with her. She does a fantastic job. And there's any suggestion that I or her or others are party to anti-Semitism is a mischaracterization attempting to win political points. Senator, you're attempting to win political points on the backs of mischaracterized statements of a member of my department. And I'm not gonna stand for that.

You are not a serious person. You are not serious about rooting out fighting anti-Semitism within the ranks of our DoD. It's despicable. You ought to be ashamed of yourself. I'm gonna move on to General Hawke. Powerful stuff. And what a weasel Hegsith is. What a weasel, pathetic human being, unserious human being that he is right there as well. By the way, if you want to know what some of the posts were of that social media person who's now become the main spokesperson for the Department of Defense, praising Robert E. Lee, spreading anti-Semitic conspiracy theories, praising the far right-wing extremist German party, AFD, saying how praising the great replacement theory, praising Christian nationalism.

That's who is now one of the top officials at the Department of Defense who Hegseth right there was supporting. If we hit subscribe, let's get to 5 million. Thanks for watching. The truth is more important than ever. Check out our new Truth Over Lies collection at store.mitustouch.com. All 100% USA Union made.