picking Fox News Channel host Pete Hegseth to lead the Department of Defense, President-elect Donald Trump has selected a military veteran and popular conservative media personality with a large following of his own. Hegseth, 44, has developed a close rapport with Trump, who also reportedly considered him for a post in his first administration. Hegseth has lobbied Trump to release service members accused of war crimes. Here are a few things to know about Hegseth. He’s a Fox News personality and author Co-host of Fox News Channel’s ”Fox & Friends Weekend,” Hegseth has been a contributor to the network for a decade. He developed a friendship with Trump through the president-elect’s regular appearances on the show. In a statement, a Fox News spokesperson complimented Hegseth’s military

He’s also written a number of books, several for the network’s publishing imprint, including ”The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free.” In announcing Hegseth’s nomination, Trump complimented that book, noting its ”nine weeks on the New York Times best-sellers list, including two weeks at NUMBER ONE.” He’s a military veteran Hegseth has served in the military, although he lacks senior military or national security experience.

After graduating from Princeton University in 2003, Hegseth joined the Army National Guard as an infantry captain and served in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Guantanamo Bay. He previously managed Concerned Veterans for America, a charity funded by conservative billionaires Charles and David Koch, and ran unsuccessfully for Senate in Minnesota in 2012. According to his Fox News profile, he has a master’s degree in public policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. When Trump formed his first Cabinet following his 2016 election, he reportedly considered Hegseth to run the Department of Veterans Affairs. He returned to Hegseth when Secretary David Shulkin faced criticism prior to his resignation in 2018.

He has defended military members accused of war crimes. In 2019, Hegseth pushed Trump to pardon US service men accused of war crimes. He fought for the servicemen’s causes on his show and online, including interviews with relatives on Fox News. He wrote on social media that pardons from Trump ”would be fantastic,” and included hashtags with the names of those accused of reporting on his private lobbying of the then-president. The effort was effective, with Trump pardoning a former US Army commando scheduled to stand trial in the killing of a suspected Afghan bomb-maker, as well as a former Army lieutenant convicted of murder for ordering his men to fire on three Afghans, killing two of them.

The report mentioned his secret lobbying of the then-president. The effort was effective, with Trump pardoning a former US Army commando scheduled to stand trial in the killing of a suspected Afghan bomb-maker, as well as a former Army lieutenant convicted of murder for ordering his men to fire on three Afghans, killing two of them. Trump also authorized the promotion of a decorated Navy SEAL convicted of posing with a deceased Islamic State detainee in Iraq.

He’d come to work during a series of worldwide crises. Hegseth would lead the Pentagon as multiple conflicts erupted, including Russia’s war in Ukraine, ongoing attacks in the Middle East by Iranian proxies, a push for a cease-fire between Israel, Hamas, and Hezbollah, and growing concerns about Russia’s alliance with North Korea. While the Pentagon is seen as a critical position in any administration, Trump’s first tenure as defence secretary was fraught with controversy. During Trump’s four-year tenure, the job was held by five men. Trump’s relationship with his civilian and military officials during those years was plagued with tension, bewilderment, and frustration, as they attempted to temper or even simply comprehend presidential tweets and declarations that surprised them.

Trump’s relationship with his civilian and military leaders was fraught with tension, confusion, and frustration during those years, as they struggled to temper or even simply interpret presidential tweets and pronouncements that caught them off guard with abrupt policy decisions they weren’t prepared to explain or defend. Many of the generals who served in his first administration, both active military and retired, have condemned Trump as unqualified to serve in the Oval Office. He has criticized them in return.