Pete Hegseth, the man President-elect Donald Trump has tapped to be defense secretary, is set to argue during his confirmation hearing Tuesday that it’s time to “give someone with dust on his boots the helm.”
The former Fox News personality will use his opening statement to hit back at criticism over his credentials — despite admitting he is an unorthodox pick to head the Pentagon, Axios reported, citing a copy of his remarks.
Hegseth, 44, plans to argue that he will “restore the warrior ethos to the Pentagon.”
“It is true that I don’t have a similar biography to Defense secretaries of the last 30 years,” Hegseth says in his opening remarks, according to the outlet.
“But, as President Trump also told me, we’ve repeatedly placed people atop the Pentagon with supposedly ‘the right credentials’ — whether they are retired generals, academics or defense contractor executives — and where has it gotten us?” he continues.
“He believes, and I humbly agree, that it’s time to give someone with dust on his boots the helm. A change agent. Someone with no vested interest in certain companies or specific programs or approved narratives.”
Elsewhere in his opening speech, Hegseth — who argues his “only special interest is — the warfighter” — is also set to tell the Senate Armed Services Committee that he’ll give “new defense companies” a better chance to win contracts and deploy emerging technologies when he takes the helm.
