> are you predicting Hegseth will back down?

I think he may be able to cancel Anthropic’s contract. But no more. He won’t back down as much as be overruled.

> As SecDef/SecWar, Hegseth is the head of the Pentagon

On paper. Also, being the de jure head of something doesn’t automatically mean you speak for it as a whole.

> while also taking his power seriously

Authority and power are different. A plane pilot has a lot of authority. They don’t have a lot of power.