The Department of Defense is a $813 billion enterprise which controls the purse strings to everything from America’s nuclear arsenal to every branch of the armed forces. All presidents appoint competent military figures or career bureaucrats to Secretary of Defense, because it’s one of the biggest and most important Cabinet positions. No president in history has ever f–ked around with the SecDef position, no one has ever hired a dumbass crony or some idiotic cable news talking head. Well, guess what? Donald Trump has chosen his Secretary of Defense and it’s just some Fox News dumbass.
President-elect Donald Trump has chosen Pete Hegseth, a Fox News host and Army veteran, to serve as his secretary of defense. Hegseth’s selection was a surprise, as he was not among those considered as a likely pick by members of Trump’s team, sources familiar with the discussions told CNN.
Sources said that it came down to Trump having a longstanding relationship with Hegseth, noting that the president-elect always thought he was “smart” and was impressed by his career. Trump also likes that Hegseth is a military veteran and the account of his service in his book, the sources said. While Hegseth’s name had not been on the initial shortlist, Trump was struggling to land on a choice for the job, and he liked Hegseth from Trump’s last term when he briefly considered him for leading the Department of Veterans Affairs before being warned that he may not get confirmed by the Senate, one source familiar said.
“Trump also thinks he has the look,” one source said.
Many people in Trump’s orbit were caught by surprise by his decision, the sources said. Hegseth didn’t emerge as a top candidate for defense secretary until Monday, a Trump adviser said, with the Fox News host interviewing for the role over the last 24 hours.
One defense official told CNN, “Everyone is simply shocked.” Another Pentagon official who was following the potential picks for defense secretary learned about the possibility of Hegseth only in the hours before the nomination and, like others who spoke on condition of anonymity with CNN, didn’t know how to react. Even some former Trump officials who have remained close to former colleagues and have been in touch with the transition were caught off guard. One former Trump official also said they were “shocked” by the selection and expect there’s going to be an effort to “take him down.”
This is connected to Trump’s insistence on doing recess appointments too – he doesn’t want his Cabinet appointments to face any kind of Senate confirmation scrutiny, and the choice of Hegseth will face an abundance of Senate scrutiny, even within the Republican caucus. So, what is known about Hegseth other than “Trump saw him on the teevee?” Well, apparently, this guy doesn’t want women in his He-Man Pentagon Boys Club.
Additionally, Trump wants to do an executive order which forms a “warrior board” of retired military to purge the existing Pentagon brass. Let me guess, Trump will loyalty-test generals and if they fail, they’re fired.
Pete Hegseth 5 days ago: “I’m straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles.” pic.twitter.com/0W3LDSakud
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 13, 2024
Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Cover Images.