Within Pete Hedgehog’s divided inner circle, a ‘cold war’ endures

[Tony]

Wow...

The conflict within Hegseth’s inner circle persists even after he purged several political appointees in April and after attempts to portray a sense of unity among his remaining brain trust. His claims, however, are belied by continued behind-the-scenes dysfunction, brought on by unresolved personality conflicts, inexperience, vacancies in key leadership roles and a steady-state paranoia over what political crisis could emerge next, current and former officials said. They described the situation on the condition of anonymity because of its sensitivity and fear of retaliation.