Hegseth Cracks Down on Microsoft: No More Chinese Coders in Pentagon Clouds
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is delivering a powerful America First wake-up call, shutting down a reckless Obama-Biden era program that let Chinese nationals poke around sensitive Department of Defense cloud systems.
In a direct video address, Hegseth declared the end of Microsoft’s “Digital Escorts” scheme, where Chinese coders, remotely supervised by U.S. contractors, had access to critical DoD networks for nearly a decade.
“This never should have happened,” Hegseth stated bluntly. “The use of Chinese nationals to service Department of Defense cloud environments — it’s over.”
He slammed the program for exposing America to unacceptable risk, even if it technically followed contracting rules. “If you’re thinking America first and common sense, this doesn’t pass either of those tests,” he said. “It blows my mind that I’m even saying these things and that we ever allowed it to happen.”
Hegseth announced immediate action: an internal audit, a formal letter of concern to Microsoft documenting a “breach of trust,” and a mandatory third-party review of the entire Digital Escorts program, including all code and submissions by Chinese nationals.
“We’re requiring a third-party audit of Microsoft’s Digital Escort program, including the code and submissions by Chinese nationals,” he explained. He also ordered a separate DoD investigation into the program and the Chinese Microsoft employees involved to check for any hidden damage or backdoors.
Hegseth made it clear this is just the start. All DoD vendors must identify and terminate any Chinese involvement in U.S. systems. “We expect vendors doing business with the Department of Defense to put U.S. national security ahead of profit maximization,” he warned.
“This is America First and it’s common sense,” Hegseth concluded. “We’ve attacked it aggressively from the beginning and we’re going to follow all the way through to make sure that this is addressed.”
Finally, some adult supervision in Washington. Under President Trump, national security isn’t for sale to the highest bidder or the cheapest foreign labor. No more handing our defenses to Communist China on a silver platter.