Pete Hegseth invites far-right conspiracy theorist to join him on high-stakes European trip

13 February

Ahead of his first international trip, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth's team has apparently invited a far-right social media personality known for spreading conspiracy theories to join the group of reporters traveling with him to various European countries this week.

That's according to a Thursday article in the Washington Post, which reported that podcaster Jack Posobiec received an invitation from the Pentagon to be a part of Hegseth's traveling media cohort. Posobiec is known for hyping the "Pizzagate" conspiracy theory, which baselessly alleged that the Comet Ping Pong pizzeria in Washington D.C. was secretly running a child sex trafficking ring on behalf of prominent Democrats. "Pizzagate" is widely viewed as the predecessor to the "QAnon" conspiracy movement.

The Post reported that Posobiec was with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in Kyiv, Ukraine, and had met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Bessent's trip to Ukraine is reportedly part of President Donald Trump's attempt to secure mineral extraction rights in the embattled Eastern European country in exchange for continued military aid.

The former Fox News host has been meeting with NATO allies in Brussels, Belgium, and he's slated to meet with officials in Poland on Friday. Hegseth's trip coincides with Trump signaling a new era to the United States' approach to the NATO alliance, as Trump said during his 2024 campaign that he would let Russia "do whatever the hell they want" to NATO countries that aren't contributing what he believes is an appropriate amount of money to sustain the alliance. Trump has also indicated that he would be in favor of allowing Russia to rejoin the G7, saying that removing Russia for its invasion of Crimea in 2014 was a mistake.

Hegseth said earlier this week that the U.S. would not support a bid by Ukraine to join the NATO alliance, and that the Trump administration would be in favor of Ukraine permanently ceding the Crimean Peninsula to Russia in order to end the war. Hegseth later walked back those comments, saying that negotiations will ultimately be up to Trump.

“What SecDef Hegseth accomplished on this trip is historic,” Posobiec tweeted. “He delivered hard truths that are necessary to set conditions for peace. And he showed his true concern for the American soldier.”

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, Posobiec — a former correspondent for the pro-Trump One America News Network (OANN) — has a long history of associating with people who harbor virulently racist and anti-Semitic viewpoints. During one OANN segment, Posobiec interviewed a pseudonymous social media account known as "Microchip," who embraced the neo-Nazi terrorist group Atomwaffen Division.

Click here to read the Post's report in its entirety (subscription required).

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