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The spokesman for Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has called the ongoing Pentagon investigation into Hegseth’s alleged mishandling of classified information a “political witch hunt.”

Some shit you should know before you read: Back in March, the “Signalgate” controversy hit the news when Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was discovered to have shared sensitive military planning details over an unclassified messaging app (Signal), before a US bombing campaign targeting Houthi militants in Yemen. The situation gained national attention after an editor from The Atlantic was “accidentally” added to the Signal group chat that included Hegseth and senior Trump administration officials. In the chat, Hegseth talked about exact strike times and drone launch windows. The entire situation prompted bipartisan concern, leading Senate Armed Services Committee leaders, Chairman Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Ranking Member Jack Reed (D-RI), to jointly request an Inspector General investigation to determine whether Hegseth violated Defense Department policies. Shortly after, the Pentagon’s Inspector General opened an investigation.

What’s going on now: In a notable development, Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell issued a statement dismissing the Department of Defense Inspector General’s (DOD IG) investigation into Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s use of Signal as “clearly a political witch hunt.” Parnell claimed that the “Biden administration holdovers” had leaked details of the inquiry to the media, singling out The New York Times. He further revealed, for the first time publicly, that Hegseth himself has provided a formal statement to the Inspector General, arguing that “this entire exercise is a sham, conducted in bad faith and with extreme bias.”

Parnell’s remarks come amid new revelations reported by The Washington Post, which indicate that the Signal messages Hegseth shared were not simply informal communications but were sourced from a classified “SECRET/NOFORN” email sent over a secure military network by Gen. Michael “Erik” Kurilla. The seriousness of that classification directly contradicts repeated claims from Hegseth’s office that no classified information was ever transmitted via Signal. Despite these disclosures, the Pentagon has continued to officially maintain that “no classified information was shared via Signal.”

This comes as NBC News recently reported that Hegseth has privately expressed interest in seeking elected office in Tennessee, including the possibility of a future gubernatorial run.