Hegseth tells Warren the broker story is false
Pete HegsethU.S. secretary of defense
At a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, Hegseth says the Financial Times story is false and was made up, and says he does not serve for money or stocks.
Responding to
Hegseth's broker at Morgan Stanley contacted BlackRock in February 2026 about a multimillion-dollar investment in its Defense Industrials Active ETF, weeks before the United States and Israel attacked Iran.
“That entire story is false. It has been from the beginning and was made up out of whole cloth.”
Official statement
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Financial Times reports Hegseth's broker sought a defense-fund investment before the Iran war; Hegseth calls the story false
The Financial Times reported on March 30, 2026, that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's broker at Morgan Stanley contacted BlackRock in February about a multimillion-dollar investment in a fund that holds defense contractors, weeks before the United States and Israel attacked Iran. Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell called the report false and fabricated and demanded a retraction, and the newspaper said it stood by its reporting. Five Democratic senators asked Hegseth whether he had shared information about pending military action with his broker, and at an April 30 hearing Hegseth told Sen. Elizabeth Warren the story was false.
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
Press release from Warren's office with its transcript of her exchange with Hegseth at the April 30, 2026 Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the Defense Department budget request.
Reporting
About this source
Fox News report on the April 30 hearing exchange between Warren and Hegseth, quoting his denial of the Financial Times report.
Before the quotation
Warren said the Financial Times had reported that Hegseth's broker tried to buy shares in a BlackRock fund invested in defense companies just before the war began. Hegseth interrupted as she began to describe the law on defense officials' stock holdings.
After the quotation
When Warren asked whether he had sought, through his broker or otherwise, to invest in defense-related funds before the war, Hegseth answered no. He said he is not making investments and that his broker knows he must get his sign-off.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is the Financial Times report that Hegseth's broker sought a multimillion-dollar investment in a defense-industry fund before the Iran war. Hegseth calls the story "false" and says it was "made up out of whole cloth", so we labeled it Denied. The closest competing label is Challenged the characterization, because he also objects to how the report was worded; it loses because he denies the underlying account.
- Recorded on
- Published here
- People and groups discussed
- Financial Times, Elizabeth Warren
More from this case
Read the full caseWarren and four senators say the reported investment would be a profound conflict of interest if accurate
“If this report is accurate, it would appear to represent an appalling effort to profit off of your knowledge of the President's plans for war.”Read statement
Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell calls the broker report false and fabricated
“This allegation is entirely false and fabricated. Neither Secretary Hegseth nor any of his representatives approached BlackRock about any such investment. This is yet another baseless, dishonest smear designed to mislead the public.”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Hegseth tells Warren the broker story is false". First published: 2026-10-17. Last updated: 2026-10-17. https://disputeindex.com/events/5999-at-a-senate-armed-services-committee-hearing-hegseth