Some current and former officials told the media outlet that «the problems are rooted in Hegseth’s lack of managerial experience in overseeing an entity anywhere near as large as the Pentagon, which employs around 3.4 million people on a budget now approaching $1 trillion.»

According to the newspaper, «Hegseth’s troubles began in March, when then-national security adviser Mike Waltz inadvertently included journalist Jeffrey Goldberg in a group Signal chat» discussing «the military campaign against the Yemen-based Houthi rebels.»

«In April, Hegseth abruptly suspended three senior advisers suspected of leaking: Dan Caldwell, a senior policy adviser; Darin Selnick, a senior Veterans Affairs official during Trump’s first administration and Hegseth’s deputy chief of staff; and Colin Carroll, chief of staff to Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg. To date, no evidence has become public to support the leaking claims,» the WSJ said.

«Hegseth became increasingly distrustful of top military leadership over the course of the spring, blaming the Pentagon’s top brass for media leaks, according to current and former officials,» the newspaper pointed out.

The US administration was displeased that President Donald Trump was left «in the dark about a pause in some weapons deliveries for Ukraine,» the WSJ said. However, «there is no indication Hegseth’s job is in jeopardy. Trump and Vice President JD Vance have stuck by him after expending immense personal energy and political capital to see him confirmed. The president likes Hegseth personally and was particularly pleased by the successful US strikes on Iran’s nuclear sites, officials said,» the Wall Street Journal concluded.