U.S. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) is calling for the resignation or removal of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth following reports that Hegseth shared classified military information with family members on his personal phone.
“Our men and women in uniform deserve better. They deserve a secretary that treats classified information with the appropriate level of secrecy because lives depend upon it,” Warner said during a media availability Tuesday.
Warner cited recent reporting that Hegseth shared details about military strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen with relatives and personal associates via Signal chat. The strikes were launched from the Norfolk-based USS Truman.
Alexandria Congressman Don Beyer has also called for Hegseth’s resignation or removal.
“The fact that he continues, if this comes out as true, where he took this information that got conveyed to the Pentagon in a classified form… and then took that information and simply copy and pasted it onto a non-secure chat on his personal device,” Warner said.
The senator expressed concern that such actions undermine intelligence alliances, saying, “Our allies won’t share their classified information with us if we don’t take appropriate care.”
Warner challenged Hegseth to visit Norfolk Naval Station and meet with families of USS Truman crew members, noting that if the classified information had been leaked, “their loved ones would have been put in harm’s way.”
The senator also recapped his recent six-day trip across Southwest Virginia, where he met with local officials, healthcare providers, educators, and community members.
In Abingdon, Warner visited a dental clinic that has expanded services due to Medicaid expansion. He reports the clinic now has 14 chairs and a lab that produces dentures efficiently, serving thousands of additional patients.
“The folks at the clinic and others who came across the region were saying that if Medicaid gets cut or particularly if Virginia rolls back the expansion, then that clinic and candidly, others across the region will probably have to close,” Warner said.
He added that depending on the depth of potential Medicaid cuts, “we could see virtually every hospital west of Roanoke closed down.”
Warner also discussed ongoing recovery efforts in the counties affected by the February flooding. While the president has designated these counties for public assistance, Warner expressed frustration that individual assistance has not been granted.
“I don’t understand why literally adjacent counties in Kentucky and West Virginia are getting that kind of relief,” he said, comparing the recent flooding to the devastating 1977 floods that destroyed the town of Grundy.
The senator reported meeting with school superintendents in Pulaski who expressed concerns about school funding, particularly Title 1 funding, and whether the state Department of Education can effectively distribute these funds.
“The idea that you’re shutting down the federal distribution channel with no transition, I think could lead to a real mess,” Warner said.
In the Roanoke Valley, Warner highlighted the region’s potential as a biotech hub, noting that Carilion, Virginia Tech, and the new medical school have done “remarkable work” in this area.
“We are one deal away from putting the Roanoke Valley New River Valley really on the national and global map as being a biotech hub,” he said, but warns that threats of research funding cuts have “put a chill on those efforts.”
Warner also addressed President Trump’s recent criticism of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, calling these “unjustified attacks” that threaten the Fed’s independence.
“If the president were to try to fire Jay Powell, it would end up in court and we would see a market meltdown that is unprecedented,” Warner warned. “We could literally see the security of the dollar being the world’s reserve currency put in play.”
The senator expressed concern about the administration’s approach to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, suggesting the White House has been “suckered into believing Vladimir Putin” and that setting a deadline for peace negotiations plays into Putin’s hands.
“Putin has no interest in a real truce. He is winning on the ground because we have pulled back some of our support,” Warner said. “If America walks away, I think Putin will feel they have an even freer hand to try to take back more territory from Ukraine and ultimately dictate terms.”
Warner concluded by addressing concerns about funding for various projects in Southwest Virginia, including FEMA disaster relief and the Volvo plant in Pulaski, where he noted that “a couple hundred folks were furloughed or laid off” recently.
“If you can’t count on FEMA, if the federal government of the United States makes a commitment to help communities have been hard hit by natural disasters and then a new administration can come in and put a pause on that. That’s not how the system is supposed to operate,” Warner said.
