Protesters repeatedly shouted "Nazi" and "war criminal" at War Secretary Pete Hegseth during a Washington Army conference, forcing removals as he discussed autonomous weapons.
Anti-war agitators erupted at least five times in the first 30 minutes of a panel Wednesday in Washington, D.C., as Secretary of War Pete Hegseth spoke on the Pentagon's Project Agincourt effort to develop and deploy autonomous military weapons and systems.
Authorities escorted the interrupters out of the conference room. One female protester refused to walk and was carried out by her arms and legs while still screaming. Hegseth, President Donald Trump's Pentagon chief, initially shrugged off the outbursts before growing visibly frustrated as the pattern continued.
The six men on stage included Acting Secretary Adam Telle, acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao, Air Force Secretary Troy Meink, and Assistant Secretary for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict Derrick Evans. Protesters had positioned themselves throughout the room and waited for each prior demonstrator to be removed before the next one shouted.
Daily Mail reporting described the interruptions as a clear routine once the panel resumed after each removal. One panelist said, "I think this is a semi-coordinated effort." Hegseth agreed.
He later observed, "Appears we have a bit of a tactic."
"Appears we have a bit of a tactic,"
The shouts mixed personal insults with familiar anti-war lines. Protesters yelled, "You’re not a warrior you’re a coward!" and "You're a Nazi!" One screamed, "You're a f***ing war criminal," and others kept chanting "war criminal!" while being led out. Another appeared to accuse Hegseth of "killing children in Gaza when children in America are starving."
When one woman was removed, Hegseth shot back, "She thinks highly of me."
"She thinks highly of me,"
The source noted that anti-war protesters have long targeted Hegseth. No injuries, arrests, or charges were reported from the scene.
The disruption landed amid broader fights over Hegseth's tenure. House Republicans have moved to avoid floor showdowns, including when House GOP scraps Thursday votes that would have forced an impeachment fight.
Speaker Mike Johnson has also shortened the schedule to push back similar votes, a step covered when Speaker Johnson cuts House session short rather than allow a forced floor confrontation.
Separate pressure has come from the left and from within Congress. Rep. Thomas Massie has pursued articles of impeachment tied to Iran war powers, detailed in coverage of how Thomas Massie files impeachment articles against the War Secretary.
Sen. Mark Kelly has demanded Hegseth's removal over plans tied to the Fort Hood shooter, as reported when Mark Kelly demands Hegseth’s ouster. Hegseth has publicly defended accountability measures in that case, including statements that America will watch Nidal Hasan’s firing squad execution for the Fort Hood massacre.
Public surveys cited alongside the conference coverage paint a tough picture for Hegseth. A Daily Mail/YouGov survey released last week found 51 percent unsure who would leave the administration next, while 11 percent named Hegseth as the next exit. Eight percent pointed to FBI Director Kash Patel; Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ranked third.
A September Marquette University Law School survey showed only 25 percent viewing Hegseth favorably, with nearly half unfavorable. A Quinnipiac poll put his approval at 32 percent and disapproval at 57 percent. A Gallup survey found just one in three Americans approve of the president's handling of the seven-month-long war in Iran.
None of those numbers excuse turning a military conference into a shouting gallery. Project Agincourt is a live Pentagon program on autonomous weapons. Cabinet officers brief on it in public settings so the public and the force can hear the plan. Screaming "Nazi" and "war criminal" while security carries people out does not advance that debate.
Hegseth stayed on the panel. The protesters left in custody of authorities. The pattern of waiting for each removal before the next shout made the coordination plain to everyone on stage.
Cabinet secretaries get hard questions. They do not forfeit the right to finish a sentence because activists prefer slogans over substance.
