Ex-Pentagon spokesperson resigned from his post 18 months ago. Now he says Hegseth is hurting Trump and needs to quit: ‘Get off the stage’

John Ullyot, who previously served as the Pentagon’s chief spokesperson, used a Saturday appearance on MS NOW to argue that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth never should have taken the job. He described Hegseth as “unfit” and said the only honorable course, if Hegseth is genuinely loyal to President Donald Trump, is to resign. Ullyot made the comments during an interview with Antonia Hylton while promoting his new book.

He told Hylton that Hegseth is too immature and too “inexperienced” for such a demanding role. According to Ullyot, Hegseth does not have the military background, management experience, or temperament the position requires. Although Hegseth served three deployments as an infantry officer in the U.S. Army National Guard, Ullyot characterized him as a “Fox News fire-breather” who “relishes” confronting journalists rather than someone suited to run the department.

“[Hegseth] could’ve run the presidential physical fitness council, like Arnold Schwarzenegger did, that would’ve been a perfect fit,” Ullyot said. “But to run the department of defense is a very serious job, and he didn’t take a serious approach.” He went on to claim that Hegseth “is very much damaging the president’s brand, no question about it, and the Republican brand.”

Former spokesperson details his critique of Hegseth’s record and loyalty

Ullyot left the Pentagon 18 months ago, not long after he stepped into the spokesperson role at the beginning of Trump’s second term.

In a subsequent Politico article, he wrote that Hegseth had ordered “strange and baffling” purges, passed along “easily debunked falsehoods” to reporters, and created severe “dysfunction” inside the department. Those criticisms have continued in his book, The President Deserves Better, which also takes aim at other officials in the administration.

While discussing the book on Saturday night, Ullyot said Hegseth should step down if accounts are accurate that he was the leading “cheerleader” for the Iran war.

“JD Vance himself the Iran War was the reason the Republicans took that drubbing,” Ullyot said. “Well, who’s at the helm of that war? Who’s responsible for getting our munitions stockpiles, and giving the best advice to the president, and essentially running that [war]? Well it’s a guy named Pete Hegseth, and he’s never done anything like that. He’s somebody who should have taken himself out,” he added.

He framed resignation as an act of loyalty. “You’d get off the stage if you were truly loyal to President Donald Trump. I’m saying that loyalty would require him, if he really does think that he’s serving the president well, well, you’d serve the president best if you got off the stage,” he said.

Ullyot maintained that Hegseth approached the Defense Department without the seriousness the job demands. He pointed to what he described as a lack of relevant experience and said the resulting decisions have hurt both Trump and the Republican Party more broadly. He has made several controversial calls during his ongoing tenure, including his recent changes to military education.

The former spokesperson has kept up a steady line of criticism since his resignation, using both his Politico piece and the new book to lay out his view of the problems under Hegseth’s leadership. Saturday’s interview continued that pattern as he urged Hegseth to leave the post. Ullyot is not alone within the party, as Republican senators urging Trump to fire Hegseth have also made their case publicly.