Jennifer Hegseth, the wife of Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, is facing questions over her reported work for a firm connected to one of the Pentagon’s largest corporate partners.
The longtime Fox News producer was reportedly paid last year for consulting work by Watchtower Strategy, a public relations company with links to the Trump administration and Republican politics, according to Politico.
Jennifer Hegseth worked for Watchtower while the firm was also representing Lockheed Martin, one of the major defense contractors from which the Pentagon regularly buys weapons and equipment.
Her father, who died in 2009, was a Lockheed Martin executive. She has also reportedly participated in high-level meetings involving Pentagon issues alongside her husband.
The payments were disclosed in the secretary of war’s annual financial filing, although the document does not specify how much she was paid.
Lockheed Martin recorded at least $75 billion in revenue last year. Defense work accounted for 96 percent of that total, or roughly $72 billion, with much of the business coming from the US government.
Since the start of the second Trump administration, the Pentagon has not paid another contractor more than Lockheed Martin, according to Defense News.
The disclosure has prompted ethics concerns about Jennifer Hegseth’s role at Watchtower, particularly because of her reported access and influence as an adviser to her husband.
Jennifer Hegseth was paid by a prominent Republican public relations firm that has also represented major defense contractors receiving multibillion-dollar Pentagon contracts, prompting questions about her role
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth has been carrying out President Donald Trump’s war on Iran
Pete and Jennifer Hegseth pose for photographers at the annual White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner on Saturday, April 25, 2026, in Washington. During his confirmation hearings in early 2025, Hegseth described his wife as his “rock”
“If Lloyd Austin’s wife was working for a lobbying firm while he was leading the Pentagon, I would have exposed the wrongdoing,” former Republican Congressman Matt Gaetz wrote on X, referring to Joe Biden’s former Pentagon chief.
“Wives of Cabinet members shouldn’t be paid by lobbyists,” Gaetz added.
Watchtower rejected the suggestion of a conflict, emphasizing its media work and Jennifer Hegseth’s experience in conservative television.
“It should be no surprise that a public affairs firm would want to work with one of the biggest former star producers at Fox News, the nation’s preeminent conservative news outlet.”
“Jen has assisted us in navigating conservative TV media and we appreciate her help. She has not interfaced with any clients nor does she provide any advice to Watchtower on defense matters,” spokesman Alex Pfeiffer said.
Several Watchtower employees previously worked at Fox News, including Pfeiffer and Brooke Singman, the network’s former top political reporter, who joined the firm over the summer.
“Watchtower finds her contacts at Fox invaluable,” a source familiar with Jennifer Hegseth’s work told the Daily Mail.
The controversy comes as her husband faces heightened scrutiny following Trump’s midterm defeat, in which Democrats swept into power across the country.
Lockheed Martin manufactures the Pentagon’s fleet of F-35 stealth fighters. The program’s lifetime cost is estimated in the trillions of dollars, with a substantial share going directly to the defense contractor
Trump has been calling advisers and questioning them about Hegseth’s performance and political standing, a pattern he often follows when weighing whether to remove a senior official.
Several Republican strategists and sources close to the White House told the Daily Mail they anticipate changes within the administration after the midterm rout. Hegseth is viewed as one of the officials most at risk.
Still, replacing Hegseth during the limited number of legislative days remaining before Democrats formally take control in early January could prove difficult, and some observers doubt it can be accomplished.
It remains uncertain whom Trump would nominate if he chose to remove Hegseth.
The most immediate successor would be Deputy Secretary of Defense Steve Feinberg, who has already been confirmed by the Senate.
If Trump opted for another candidate before Republicans surrender control of Congress in January, the administration would have to move quickly to begin confirmation hearings.
The congressional calendar has few working days left this year, and some insiders believe lawmakers would be reluctant to rush through the confirmation of a new secretary of war within two months while handling other priorities.
“The Department of War maintains a rigorous, multi-layered ethics framework that includes financial disclosure reviews, divestitures where appropriate, and screening to prevent conflicts of interest,” Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said in a statement to the Daily Mail.
“Secretary Hegseth and his wife are in full compliance with all ethics laws and regulations, and their sole focus is serving our warfighters, President Trump, and the American people.”
When lawmakers return to Capitol Hill, Congressman Thomas Massie, a vocal critic of both Trump and Hegseth, is expected to begin an effort to impeach the secretary of war.
If that effort fails, Democrats are expected to open an investigation into Hegseth early next year.
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