Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts thought she had the perfect “gotcha” question to trap Donald Trump’s secretary of defense nominee Pete Hegseth, but he turned the moment right back on her, causing the hearing room to erupt in laughter.
“Mr. Hegseth, you’ve written that after they retire, generals should be banned from working for the defense industry for 10 years,” Warren began Monday as the nominee appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee. “You and I agree on the corrosive effects of the revolving door between the Pentagon and defense contractors.
“The question I have for you on this is: Will you put your money where your mouth is and agree that when you leave this job, you will not work for the defense industry for 10 years?” she asked.
“Senator, it’s not even a question I’ve thought about,” Hegseth responded, adding he would consult with the president regarding such a post-Pentagon move.
Warren fired back, “In other words, you’re quite sure that every general who serves should not go directly into the defense industry for 10 years, but you’re not willing to make that same pledge?”
WARREN: You’re quite sure that every general who serves should not go directly into the defense industry for 10 years, but you’re not willing to make that same pledge?
HEGSETH: I’m not a general, Senator. pic.twitter.com/GwjJ8703wW
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) January 14, 2025
“I’m not a general, Senator,” Hegseth replied with a slight smirk, at which point many in the hearing room broke out in laughter.
Among those sitting in the audience and probably laughing were over 30 former Navy SEALs and Special Forces veterans who came out to support Hegseth’s nomination.
30+ Navy Seals and Green Berets sitting in the audience supporting @PeteHegseth. pic.twitter.com/2jdjqiBFDf
— Tim Kennedy (@TimKennedyMMA) January 14, 2025
Another good moment for Hegseth in a confirmation hearing (and there were many of them) was when he addressed the problem of the Pentagon’s bloated, top-heavy bureaucracy.
“We won World War II with seven four-star generals.
“Today we have 44 four-star generals. There’s an inverse relationship between the size of staffs and victory on the battlefield,” the SECDEF nominee argued.
“We don’t need more bureaucracy at the top, we need more warfighters empowered at the bottom,” said Hegseth, who served in combat in both Iraq and Afghanistan.
“It’s going to be my job … to identify where fat can be cut, so it can go toward lethality,” he concluded.
PETE HEGSETH: “We won WW2 with 7 four star generals. Today we have 44 four star generals… we don’t need more bureaucracy at the top, we need more war fighters empowered at the bottom.”
🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/7yATY747W2
— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) January 14, 2025
During questioning from GOP Sen. Rick Scott of Florida, the combat veteran-turned-Fox News host said the reason he agreed to take the secretary of defense job is to get the Pentagon back on mission.
“People see me as someone who hosts a morning show on television. But people that really know me know where my heart’s at,” he said.
Pete Hegseth on why he wants the job:
“Because I love my Country… People see me as someone who hosts a morning show on television, but people who really know me know where my heart’s at.
It’s with the guys in this audience…We’ve been in some of the darkest and most… pic.twitter.com/r3QjYUrBTI
— Media Research Center (@theMRC) January 14, 2025
“It’s with the guys in this audience who’ve had my back, and I’ve had theirs,” Hegseth added, pointing to his supporters sitting behind him. “We’ve been in some of the darkest and most difficult places you can ever be in. … I’m doing this job for them, for all of them.”
Overall, it was a tour de force for Hegseth, making it appear very likely he will be confirmed.
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