Hegseth said Friday that a hiring freeze and an “aggressive” effort to fire civilian employees is on the way.

“We’re going to be thoughtful, but we’re also going to be aggressive, up and down the chain,” he said in a video posted on X.

In a memo issued this week, Hegseth directed senior Pentagon officials and military leaders to plan for an 8 percent cut to the defense budget for each year over the next five years, which would amount to about $300 billion less in military spending.

Reductions are aimed at the military command in Europe and the Middle East, while programs pertaining to nuclear weapons, submarines, attack drones, missile defense and cybersecurity would be spared.

The Pentagon also said it will look to redirect about $50 billion in the Biden administration’s budget proposal that would have gone to "so-called ‘climate change’ and other woke programs" and "excessive bureaucracy."

Acting Deputy Defense Secretary Robert Salesses said money would be reallocated for border security and Trump’s proposed “Iron Dome for America” missile defense system.

The Pentagon’s current budget is more than $850 billion. Lawmakers are generally loathe to cut defense spending. The House GOP budget endorsed by President Trump contains a $100 billion defense spending hike.

Defense spending accounted for 13 percent of all government spending last year. Medicare, Medicaid and other government insurance programs made up 24 percent of the budget, followed by Social Security at 21 percent.

WASHINGTON REACTS

Democrats and defense hawks expressed alarm.

“These types of hasty, indiscriminate budget cuts would betray our military forces and their families and make America less safe,” said Senate Armed Services Committee ranking member Jack Reed (D-R.I.).

Republicans, who traditionally oppose defense cuts, took the news in stride.

“This process will enable the Secretary to offset needless and distracting programs — such as those focused on climate change and [diversity, equity and inclusion] — and direct focus on important warfighting priorities shared by the Congress,” said Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Roger Wicker (R-Miss.).

TRUMP ESCALATES WAR OF WORDS WITH UKRAINE

Trump on Friday continued railing against Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, suggesting Zelensky wouldn’t play a part in negotiations to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.

“He has no cards. And you get sick of it,” Trump said on Fox News Radio.

“So, I don’t think he’s very important to be at meetings, to be honest with you. He makes it very hard to make deals.”

Zelensky has said Ukraine must be involved in any peace agreement, although Ukrainian officials were frozen out of a summit last week between U.S. and Russian officials in Saudi Arabia.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that former President Biden had his own frustrations with Zelensky.

However, Keith Kellogg, Trump’s special envoy to Ukraine and Russia, called Zelensky an

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