Amna Nawaz
@PBSNewsHour·5.3M subscribers·62.2K videos
WATCH: Rep. Jacobs asks Hegseth if Trump is mentally fit to be commander-in-chief
Posted
April 29, 2026
Views
5,300
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April 29, 2026
5,300
113
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3:21Now PlayingRep. Sara Jacobs, D-Calif., asked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth if he believed that President Donald Trump is mentally fit to be commander-in-chief of the U.S. military, citing recent threats he made to Iran, such as warning that a “civilization will die tonight” if a deal wasn't reached.
“Did you ask the same question of Joe Biden for four years?” Hegseth said.
Jacobs said Biden is not the president and that Trump has been in the Oval Office for a year and a half.
“I won't even engage with the level of disparagement that you're putting on the commander-in-chief,” Hegseth said.
Jacobs noted several Republicans who have also raised concerns about the president.
“How do I explain to my constituents that while they are in harm's way, their commander in chief is posting these unhinged posts?”
Hegseth continued to refer to Biden and attacked his leadership.
Hegseth and other Pentagon officials were invited to testify before the House Armed Services Committee on President Donald Trump’s 2027 budget request to increase defense spending to $1.5 trillion – the largest proposed amount in decades.
The House hearing gave lawmakers a chance to question the defense leaders for the first time since the start of the war on Iran, which the U.S. and Israel launched at the end of February. While Hegseth has touted the Iran war as “a gift to the world,” polls have found that a majority of Americans disapprove of the conflict and the Trump administration’s handling of it.
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