Hegseth stresses support for Israel as Senate Dems grill Trump’s Pentagon pick
In a contentious hearing, the former Fox News host signaled a loosening of rules of engagement for troops abroad and stressed his "robust" support for Israel, yet offered few specifics on how he would tackle the Pentagon’s biggest challenges.
WASHINGTON — President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for the next US secretary of defense, former Fox News morning show host Pete Hegseth, advertised his support for Israel but offered little else in the way of a foreign policy vision in a contentious Senate hearing on Tuesday.
"I support Israel destroying and killing every last member of Hamas," Hegseth responded to Sen. Tom Cotton (R-SC). Earlier in the hearing, at least three protesters were escorted out by security for vocally interrupting the proceedings with statements condemning the ongoing war in Gaza. One was audibly heard calling Hegseth a "Christian Zionist."
Yet Hegseth balked when asked by Cotton whether he considered himself as such. "I'm a Christian, and I robustly support the state of Israel and its existential defense," he responded.
"Donald Trump stood behind Israel in every way, in ways this administration has not," Hegseth argued later in the hearing.
