Donald Trump picks Pete Hegseth as secretary of defence

US President-elect Donald Trump picked Fox News Channel host Pete Hegseth as his secretary of defence on Tuesday.

“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,” Trump said in a statement.

Hegseth is an Army National Guard veteran and served in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, news agency Reuters reported.

Hegseth has said he left the Army in 2021 after being deemed an extremist by an Army that didn’t want him any more.

“The feeling was mutual — I didn’t want this Army anymore either,” Hegseth wrote in his book “The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free.”

“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,” Trump said in his statement.

The President-elect further said that during his time as a host on Fox News, Pete used the platform to “fight for our Military and Veterans”.

He further said that Pete’s book, The War on Warriors, revealed “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,” Trump added.