First on Fox: The U.S. Military Academy at West Point is apologizing after a staff member mistakenly said Pete Hegseth was not accepted into the historic military college, and now a lawmaker is seeking accountability.
Rep. Jim Banks, Republican of Indiana, accused West Point administrators of trying to “sabotage” Hegseth. Nomination to be President-elect Trump's Secretary of Defense.
Banks are now demanding information on how the error was allowed to happen.
“As you know, ProPublica reporter Jesse Eisinger was preparing to publish a story falsely claiming that Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth was lying when he said he had been accepted to West Point but had decided not to attend,” Banks wrote.
“To prevent a blatantly false story from being published, Hegseth published his West Point acceptance letter, validating his claim and leading ProPublica to kill the story. Eisinger defended his reporting, claiming that West Point OPA told him 'twice on record.'” That Hegseth had not even applied to West Point “
Rep. Jim Banks, pictured left, demands to know how West Point was able to “accidentally” tell a reporter that Pete Hegseth, right, had not been accepted. (Getty Images)
“It's so disgraceful West Point officials It would blatantly interfere in the political process and make false allegations regarding a presidential candidate.
“Even in the unlikely scenario of OPA mistakenly making false claims not once but twice, it is an inexcusable act of incompetence that OPA did not fully verify the accuracy of its information before sharing it with a reporter.”
He asked the school to turn over to Congress “all communications and documents relating to how West Point OPA falsely accused Hegseth of lying about his application.”
When reached for comment, West Point apologized for the error and said academy records indicated Hegseth was accepted in 1999 but did not attend.
Pete Hegseth says he'll stand here in this fight after his meeting with senators
President-elect Donald Trump appointed Hegseth as Secretary of Defense. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
“An incorrect statement regarding Hegseth's admission to the United States Military Academy was made by a staff member on December 10, 2024. After further review of the archived database, staff realized that this statement was false. Hegseth was offered admission to West Point as a prospective cadet.” West Point's Communications Directorate said: “He is a member of the Class of 2003. The Academy takes this situation very seriously and apologizes for this administrative error.”
Hegseth is a veteran of the Army National Guard who served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.
It comes as it continues Meeting with senators As part of the confirmation process to join the incoming Trump administration.
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Banks, an Army veteran, was a staunch ally of Hegseth. His support will be crucial next year, after he won a landslide victory in November to become Indiana's next senator.
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Eisinger, an editor at ProPublica, defended the outlet's handling of the situation in a long series of posts on X.
“No, we're not publishing a story. This is how journalism is supposed to work. Listen to something. Verify something. Repeat steps 1 and 2 as many times as needed. The end,” he said.
“Peter Hegseth will shake up the Department of Defense and remove vigilance from our defense and military academies. This upsets the bureaucrats at West Point, who now appear to be trying to sabotage his nomination,” Banks told Fox News Digital.
