In selecting Fox News Channel host Pete Hegseth to lead the Department of Defense, President-elect Donald Trump has chosen a military veteran and influential conservative media figure with a significant following.
Hegseth, 44, has built a close relationship with Trump, who had reportedly considered him for a position in his first administration. Hegseth has been outspoken in his advocacy for pardoning service members accused of war crimes.
In his latest book, The War on Warriors, Hegseth criticizes what he calls “woke” generals and leaders of elite military academies, accusing them of making the military weaker and “effeminate” by prioritizing diversity, equity, and inclusion. He argues that rank-and-file soldiers are being undermined by “feckless civilian leaders and foolish brass,” and warns that the next president will need to “clean house.”
Hegseth has also been vocal in his disdain for transgender service members and the military’s shifting policies, claiming that these changes are alienating potential recruits. In his book, he writes, “America’s white sons and daughters are walking away, and who can blame them?”
Like Trump, Hegseth embraces a traditional view of masculinity, asserting that men are naturally driven to fight, compete, and prove their strength. He shares Trump’s criticism of NATO allies, calling them “self-righteous and impotent nations” that fail to meet their defense spending commitments, while expecting the U.S. to uphold outdated defense agreements.
Hegseth is also highly critical of the political left, referring to it as “America’s domestic enemies” and “America-wreckers.” His writing reflects a deep skepticism toward policies, laws, and international treaties that he believes restrict American military power, such as the Geneva Conventions, which he views as outdated in the face of adversaries who don’t follow them. He is dismissive of moral debates surrounding war, writing bluntly of the American decision to drop nuclear bombs on Japan in World War II: “They won. Who cares?”
Hegseth has proposed renaming the Department of Defense back to its original name, the War Department, and has called for a 10-year ban on generals working for defense contractors after retiring from military service.
He’s gone viral — with an ax
Hegseth gained widespread attention and was later sued after accidentally hitting a U.S. Army master sergeant with an errant ax during a 2015 Fox & Friends segment.
The video shows Hegseth throwing an ax that misses its target and strikes Jeffrey Prosperie, a drummer with West Point’s Hellcats field band, who had been invited to the show to mark the Army’s 240th anniversary. Records show that the lawsuit was dropped in 2019. Prosperie’s attorney, Brandon Cotter, said in an email that “The parties have resolved the matter and will make no further comment.” Prosperie did not respond to requests for comment.
Fox News, which was also named in the lawsuit, called the incident “unfortunate and completely unintentional.” The network said it immediately apologized to Prosperie and offered him medical assistance, which he declined.
He’s questioned the role of women in combat
Hegseth has argued that making the military more lethal should be the top priority, and he believes that allowing women to serve in combat roles undermines this goal.
During an interview on The Shawn Ryan Show podcast to promote his new book, Hegseth said, “Everything about men and women serving together makes the situation more complicated, and complication in combat means casualties are worse.” He was clear in stating that women should not be in combat roles, claiming it hasn’t made the military more effective or lethal, and that it complicates fighting.
While he acknowledges that diversity in the military can be a strength, he also argued that it’s because minority and white men can perform similarly, which he says isn’t the case for women. He suggested that by opening combat roles to women, the military has lowered its standards, which in turn affects the capability of those units.
However, since then-Defense Secretary Ash Carter opened all combat roles to women in 2016, women have successfully passed some of the military’s toughest tests, including training to become Green Berets, Army Rangers, and Navy SEAL support operators in Naval Special Warfare.
He’s defended service members accused of war crimes
In 2019, Hegseth pushed Trump to pardon U.S. service members accused of war crimes. He advocated for the soldiers on his Fox News show and online, interviewing their family members and sharing their stories. He also posted on social media, saying that pardons from Trump “would be amazing,” using hashtags with the names of those involved to draw attention to their cases.
Hegseth’s efforts were successful. That year, Trump pardoned a former U.S. Army commando who was facing trial for killing a suspected Afghan bomb-maker, as well as a former Army lieutenant convicted of murder for ordering his men to shoot at three Afghans, killing two. Trump also granted a promotion to a decorated Navy SEAL convicted of posing with a dead ISIS fighter in Iraq
He’s a military veteran
Hegseth has military experience, but he does not have high-ranking military or national security credentials.
After graduating from Princeton University in 2003, Hegseth was commissioned as an infantry officer in the Army National Guard. He served overseas in Afghanistan and Iraq, and also at Guantanamo Bay.
He previously led Concerned Veterans for America, a group supported by conservative billionaires Charles and David Koch, and ran for the Senate in Minnesota in 2012, though unsuccessfully. According to his Fox News bio, he holds a master’s degree in public policy from Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
When Trump was selecting his first Cabinet in 2016, he reportedly considered Hegseth to head the Department of Veterans Affairs. He also revisited the idea when Secretary David Shulkin faced criticism before being removed in 2018.
He’s a Fox News personality and author
Hegseth, co-host of Fox & Friends Weekend on Fox News, has been a contributor to the network for over ten years. He built a close relationship with Trump through the president-elect’s frequent appearances on the show. A Fox News spokesperson praised Hegseth for his military expertise, saying his “insights and analysis, especially on military matters, resonated deeply with our viewers.”
Hegseth has also written several books, including The War on Warriors, published by the network’s own imprint. When announcing Hegseth’s nomination, Trump highlighted the book’s success, noting that it spent nine weeks on the New York Times best-seller list, with two of those weeks at number one.
He would come to the job during a series of global crises
Hegseth would lead the Pentagon during a time of growing challenges, including Russia’s war in Ukraine, ongoing attacks in the Middle East by Iranian-backed groups, calls for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas and Hezbollah, and rising concerns over the strengthening ties between Russia and North Korea.
The Pentagon is an important role in any administration, but the position of defense secretary was especially unstable during Trump’s first term. Five people held the job in just four years.
Trump’s relationship with his military and civilian leaders was often tense and confusing. They struggled to keep up with sudden policy changes announced through his tweets, which left them unprepared to explain or defend his decisions.
Many generals who worked for Trump, both active duty and retired, have criticized him as unfit for office. In turn, Trump has attacked them as well.
