Former President Donald Trump's decision to tap Fox News personality Pete Hegseth to be his defense secretary sent shockwaves through the political world this week and is even drawing a shocked reaction from at least one of his coworkers.
CNN's Brian Stelter reports that an unidentified Fox News host was "flabbergasted" by Trump's decision to pick his colleague, who in the past has gained notoriety for lobbying on behalf of convicted war criminals.
"You’re telling me Pete is going to oversee two million employees?” he asked.
Trump in his first term had rough relationships with defense secretaries, as Ret. Gen. James Mattis and Mark Esper both denounced him as unfit for office after serving with him.
According to Stelter, Trump decided to pick Hegseth not for his capabilities at running a massive department with millions of employees, but for having "television star-power."
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"Hegseth, who has been a co-host of 'Fox & Friends Weekend' for the better part of a decade, has used the show to highlight his views about the US military," Stelter notes. "Hegseth has railed against the Pentagon’s adoption of 'social justice' messages and argued that 'woke' policies have hurt military recruitment."
Like Trump, Stelter writes, Hegseth is no stranger to scandal.
"Inside Fox, staffers buzzed about Hegseth’s own scandal," he writes. "Multiple sources said that he cheated on his second wife, Samantha, with Jennifer Rauchet, a producer of Fox’s morning show. In an interview for my 2020 book 'Hoax,' an executive confirmed the affair and said Rauchet showed favoritism toward Hegseth."