From actor to US Secretary of Defense — who is Pete Hegseth?
In the United States of America, after Donald Trump's victory and inauguration, the new president's team takes over the work of the departments. The U.S. Department of Defense is headed by Pete Hegseth, a rather scandalous man known for his right-wing views and a number of unfavorable aspects of his biography, such as drinking and rape accusations.
Who is Pete Hegseth, how does he live and what does he say about the war in Ukraine? Read the Novyny.LIVE article.
Pete Hegseth's career
The politician's parents are from Norway but live in the United States. Hegseth was born in Minnesota. He graduated from high school and studied at the prestigious Princeton University. While in college, he joined the Reserve Officer Training Corps, and upon graduation, he became an officer in the Minnesota National Guard.
Hegseth received his first military award for service in Cuba, where his unit guarded a naval base. After Cuba, he voluntarily went to Iraq as an officer and received another award.
After his military service, he ran for the Senate in 2013, but failed. He resigned in 2014, but returned to service in 2019. In 2021, he was supposed to guard the presidential inauguration ceremony, but was excluded from the list because of his tattoo. He eventually resigned.
While some candidates for other positions were approved unanimously by the Senate, Hegseth's confirmation vote was split 50-50, with Vice President J.D. Vance cast the tie-breaking vote in his favor.
Pete Hegseth's bad reputation
After all, many Republicans did not want to vote for Hegseth because of the negative aspects of his biography, in particular, that he was suspected of sexual assault due to excessive drinking.
In 2017, a Republican activist accused Hegseth of locking her in a hotel room and raping her. He denied it, saying they had consensual sexual contact. To keep the story from going to trial and damaging his career, the man paid her $50,000.
In addition to his military career, Pete Hegseth was an actor and TV host. He even wrote books, some of which became bestsellers.
As for his personal life and family, he is married for the third time. And he has often been accused of family infidelity, such as the aforementioned incident in the hotel. He came to the swearing-in ceremony with his third wife and seven children, four of whom were his own and three adopted.
Pete Hegseth's views on the war in Ukraine
The newly minted minister has not been verbose about the war in Ukraine. However, he made his first statement in 2022, at the beginning of the full-scale invasion. However, he stressed that what happens in his country is more important to him.
"What is happening in Ukraine is important. But it all pales in comparison to the crime I see in the streets, the liberalism I see in my culture, the inflation I see in my pocket, the quality of life for ordinary Americans has declined," Hegseth says.
It is clear that he will follow all of Trump's instructions. After all, as soon as the president ordered the closure of aid programs, Hegseth suspended new Army contracts.
Tattoo of the U.S. Secretary of Defense
Pete Hegseth is quite a "decorated" man, covered in tattoos that reflect his beliefs and values. His body features the Jerusalem Cross, the Latin inscription "Deus Vult" ("God wills it"), a cross and sword with the name of God, a Christogram, the phrase "We the People", as well as the opening line of the U.S. Constitution, among many others.
Earlier, we wrote about the life and views of the new U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, his biography, personal life, and career.
We also wrote about who replaced Anthony Blinken as U.S. Secretary of State. What is known about his personal life and relationship with Trump — in the article.