President-elect Donald Trump announced that Pete Hegseth will serve as secretary of defense in his second administration, stating in a Trump-Vance transition press release:
I am honored to announce that I have nominated Pete Hegseth to serve in my Cabinet as The Secretary of Defense. Pete has spent his entire life as a Warrior for the Troops, and for the Country. Pete is tough, smart and a true believer in America First. With Pete at the helm, America’s enemies are on notice — Our Military will be Great Again, and America will Never Back Down. Pete is a graduate of Princeton University, and has a Graduate Degree from Harvard University. He is an Army Combat Veteran who did tours in Guantanamo Bay, Iraq, and Afghanistan. For his actions on the battlefield, he was decorated with two Bronze Stars, as well as a Combat Infantryman’s Badge. Pete has been a host at FOX News for eight years, where he used that platform to fight for our Military and Veterans. Pete’s recent book, “The War on Warriors,” spent nine weeks on the New York Times best-sellers list, including two weeks at NUMBER ONE. The book reveals the leftwing betrayal of our Warriors, and how we must return our Military to meritocracy, lethality, accountability, and excellence. Pete has also led two Veterans Advocacy organizations, leading the fight for our Warriors, and our great Veterans. Nobody fights harder for the Troops, and Pete will be a courageous and patriotic champion of our “Peace through Strength” policy.
In response to the announcement, Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) criticized Trump’s nomination, calling Hegseth a “Fox & Friends weekend co-host” despite his more than 20 years of military service for which he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge and two Bronze Star Medal decorations. Warren stated in a post on X:
A Fox & Friends weekend co-host is not qualified to be the Secretary of Defense. I lead the Senate military personnel panel. All three of my brothers served in uniform. I respect every one of our servicemembers. Donald Trump’s pick will make us less safe and must be rejected.
In response to Warren’s post, former U.S. Army LTG Michael Flynn responded that Hegseth will be an excellent secretary of defense, stating in a post on X:
Try not to live with hate in your heart for once in your life. Open your mind up and choose positive change instead of the WDC ways of doing stuff. It hasn’t worked for decades and our nation is in the abyss of failure. @PeteHegseth will be an excellent SECDEF.
