Pete Hegseth once said that there should be “consequences for war crimes” and that the military should refuse illegal orders, a resurfaced clip has shown. Speaking at a conservative conference in 2016, the now-Defense Secretary said there has to be repercussions “if you’re doing something that is just completely unlawful and ruthless”. “That’s why the military said it won’t follow unlawful orders from its Commander-in-chief,” he said. “There’s a standard, there's a belief that we are above what so many things that our enemies would do.” It comes as the Pentagon is being challenged by six Democratic lawmakers who have urged US service personnel not to follow illegal directives following numerous deadly strikes on alleged narcotic vessels in the Caribbean.