NEW YORK (Diya TV) — President-Elect Donald Trump said he will nominate Fox News host Pete Hegseth as Defense Secretary when he returns to the White House. The announcement sent ripples through Washington over plans to remake his cabinet with familiar conservative media voices.
“Pete has been a warrior for our country, a true patriot,” Trump said. “I’m bringing him into my Cabinet as the Secretary of Defense.” The former president highlighted Hegseth’s military background, pointing to his service in Iraq and Afghanistan as an Army National Guard officer. Hegseth, Trump said, was a natural fit for the Pentagon to lead it as he had strong advocacy for military reforms and different opinions regarding the current U.S. defense policies.
Hegseth, a fixture on Fox News’ “Fox & Friends” weekend program for many years, has long been a conservative voice. He is perhaps best known for his staunch defense of veterans’ issues, national security policies, and critiques of what he sees as inefficient bureaucracy in the U.S. military. He’s making the kind of move from television to potentially a high-ranking government position that has characterized the way media figures become politicians during the Trump era.
However, the public declaration on whether Hegseth is accepting the offer of the Trump administration or not has not come to the open. Whether he accepts the position remains unknown to this date, due to the fact that isolation difficulties bar him from possibly leading the Department of Defense during international tensions and evolving military needs.
Hegseth’s reported entry into the Cabinet raised many questions among political and defense experts. Many critics say he lacks experience in high-level government defense roles which may difficult for him to navigate. On the other hand, his appointment continues the strategy of Trump to bring outsiders into Washington; he remains fully committed to disrupting the natural order of things.
National security analyst at the RAND Corporation Richard Johnson believes that Hegseth will bring a different perspective to the Department of Defense but might be a cause for concern in terms of limited experience in Pentagon operations.
If Hegseth is confirmed, he will encounter a variety of immediate problems: conflicts in Eastern Europe will continue unabated, tensions between the U.S. and China are rising, and military spending and policy debates are roiling at home. Speculation runs the gamut on how this choice may influence the orientation of U.S. defense strategy, especially with Trump having said repeatedly that he wants to pull back U.S. involvement in foreign wars.
Fox News declined to comment on the reported resignation plans by Hegseth.
