Trump's Pentagon pick comes under fire at Senate hearing

President-elect Donald Trump's process to get his nominees confirmed began on a stormy note with Democrats on the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) slamming his pick as the secretary of defence, Pete Hegseth, about his personal conduct, views on women in combat, racist comments, alcohol abuse, lack of experience, support for war criminals, partisanship, and poor record of management.

- Prashant Jha

Hegseth, a former Fox News anchor and veteran, attributed the allegations to a "smear campaign" by the "Left-wing media" because he was a "change agent", claimed his "redemption" was real, and defined his agenda as defending the homeland, countering China in the Indo-Pacific, ending wars and modernising the US military.

He also expressed both support for the Geneva conventions but also said, repeatedly, that rules of warfighting had changed and adversaries took advantage of US abiding by rules—indicating a deeply ambivalent attitude to laws of war and leaving open ended the issue of whether under him the US military will abide by international law.