Trump to nominate Fox News host Pete Hegseth to be defense secretary

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A 2016 file photo of Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth. If confirmed, Hegseth would be the least experienced defense secretary in American history. / AP

President-elect Donald Trump has announced he will nominate Fox News host Pete Hegseth to serve as secretary of defense.

"Pete is tough, smart and a true believer in America First," Trump said. "With Pete at the helm, America's enemies are on notice - Our Military will be Great Again, and America will Never Back Down."

Hegseth is a veteran of the Army National Guard, where he did tours of duty in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay as an infantry officer. During his military service, he was awarded two Bronze Stars and a Combat Infantryman Badge.

Hegseth ran a short-lived Senate campaign in his home state of Minnesota in 2012, before dropping out. He was also CEO of Concerned Veterans for America, a veteran advocacy organization, prior to joining Fox News as a contributor in 2014. At the network, he has helmed several programs, most notably hosting "Fox & Friends Weekend."

While some current and former Fox News personalities have voiced support for Trump, Hegseth is the first current employee to be nominated for a position in his administration.

It's an unexpected choice that deviates from most of Trump's recent staff picks for his White House, who largely descend from political roles in federal and state governments.

A number of Republicans on Capitol Hill were surprised by the announcement following a slate of fairly well-known and well-supported candidates for other national security positions. One House Republican Committee chair expressed shock at learning that Hegseth was chosen, saying he was not on the known list of names under consideration.

Indiana Sen. Todd Young was also unaware of Hegseth, saying "I don't have a sense of his background or his vision for the department." But he said he wanted to give all of Trump's nominees a fair opportunity to be heard.

That said, Trump has focused his attention on appointing loyal allies to positions of power within his incoming administration. In a statement, he praised Hegseth's career, including his work on Fox, saying he used his "platform to fight for our Military and Veterans."

Hegseth has also written several books focused on conservative causes, most recently "The War on Warriors," which, in a blurb on his website, states, "We have only one Pentagon. Either we take it back or surrender it altogether."

Fox News praised Hegseth in a statement: "Pete Hegseth has been an exceptional host on FOX & Friends and FOX Nation and a best-selling author for FOX News Books for nearly a decade."

"His insights and analysis especially about the military resonated deeply with our viewers and made the program the major success that it is today. We are extremely proud of his work at FOX News Media and wish him the best of luck in Washington," the statement continued.

Deirdre Walsh and Claudia Grisales contributed reporting.