Chairman Wicker Leads Senate Armed Services Committee in Pete Hegseth’s Secretary of Defense Nomination Hearing

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today led his committee colleagues in a hearing examining the nomination of Mr. Peter B. Hegseth, President-elect Trump's nominee to serve as the next Secretary of Defense.

In his opening remarks, Chairman Wicker reviewed the extremely precarious global situation that will face President-elect Trump and his team. The Chairman suggested that the Pentagon will need strong leadership to confront growing threats from China, Russia, North Korea, Iran, and others.

"The United States faces the most dangerous security environment since World War II. We are witnessing the explosive growth and reach of China's hard power. We are also observing the emergence of an Axis of Aggressors," Chairman Wicker said. "Terrorism remains a threat as Israel wages war against Hamas and Hezbollah and as the Assad regime collapses in Syria. America has entered a window of maximum danger, and the department needs energetic and focused civilian leadership. Those values begin at the top, with the Secretary of Defense."

Chairman Wicker also applauded Hegseth as a prospective change agent at the Department of Defense for President Trump, after years of sclerotic, bureaucratic rule within the Department.

"Every day, men and women in uniform make tremendous contributions to U.S. security. They and the American people deserve a Pentagon that does the same," Chairman Wicker said. "Today's Department of Defense is no longer prepared for great power competition. It is not a national defense institution ready to achieve and sustain technological supremacy across the range of operations. As I said in the hearing, Pete Hegseth is an unconventional pick, just like Donald Trump was an unconventional candidate when he walked down those escalator steps in 2015. We need rapid change at scale in our Department of Defense, and Pete Hegseth has the determination and the tools to achieve real change. He will inject a new warrior ethos into the Pentagon, a spirit that can cascade from the top down."

In his exchange with the nominee, Chairman Wicker asked Mr. Hegseth for an accounting of the variety of allegations leveled against him relating to his personal conduct. Hegseth addressed the question by highlighting the anonymous nature of the allegations and focused on his priorities for bringing the Pentagon back to its duties of warfighting.

Chairman Wicker additionally asked Mr. Hegseth to expand on his views on a range of national security issues, to include defense budgeting, the threat of China, and reforms required at the Department of Defense. Hegseth agreed that the defense budget cannot be permitted to remain under 3 percent of gross domestic product, and vocally endorsed Senator Wicker's recent FORGED Act to reform DoD.

"Senator, I've had a chance to review the FORGED Act, that paper. Those are precisely the kinds of ideas that need to be pursued, and I look forward to working with this committee to ensure we cut the red tape, we incentivize innovation, we rebuild the defense industrial base, cut out the bureaucracy, all the things that are preventing the platforms and the tools from getting rapidly from our great defense companies here that should and those that want to compete into the hands of warfighters…I would present to the committee the reputation of President Donald Trump and me coming alongside him to ensure we have peace through strength by rebuilding our military, investing as necessary. Going under 3 percent, Mr. Chairman, is very dangerous," Hegseth said.

Watch the full exchange here.

Read the remarks as delivered below or watch them here.

If confirmed, Mr. Pete Hegseth would assume the role in a moment of consequence. The United States faces the most dangerous security environment since World War II. We are witnessing the explosive growth and reach of China's hard power. We are also observing the emergence of an Axis of Aggressors. That coalition is characterized by broadening and deepening military cooperation among the dictatorships ruling China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea. Terrorism remains a threat as Israel wages war against Hamas and Hezbollah and as the Assad regime collapses in Syria. America has entered a window of maximum danger, and the department needs energetic and focused civilian leadership. Those values begin at the top, with the Secretary of Defense.

Many of my distinguished colleagues have served in a significant tenure on this committee, and our [memories] are fairly long. We should reflect over previous Secretaries of Defense and their hearings and ask ourselves a simple question. Has the civilian leadership of the Pentagon - under administration of both parties - proven up to the challenge? Often the answer has been no, the civilian leadership has not built the Department of Defense to meet the moment. And this is our moment to correct that. A few examples illustrate how leaders in the past have fallen short.

Most of the department's signature programs run years behind schedule and billions of dollars over cost. Vital initiatives have suffered, such as the F-35, the new Sentinel ICBM, and the Navy's shipbuilding program, including the Constellation-class Frigate.

The Department of Defense desperately needs civilian leaders who listen to the advice of combatant commanders - many of whom would benefit from innovative systems. Yet a risk-averse DOD culture has kept too many promising technologies on the wrong side of the so-called Valley of Death - that tenuous period between experimental prototypes and production contracts. Defense companies backed by venture capital receive less than one percent of defense contracts.

As we all know, the Pentagon still cannot even pass an audit. The department must simplify and streamline its bureaucracy so it can respond to innovation. Staffs have ballooned. Organizations are top-heavy. Civilian leaders have promised time-and-again to slim down the bureaucracy and perhaps genuinely hoped to.

Every day, men and women in uniform make tremendous contributions to U.S. security. They and the American people deserve a Pentagon that does the same. Today's Department of Defense is no longer prepared for great power competition. It is not a national defense institution ready to achieve and sustain technological supremacy across the range of operations.

Admittedly, this nomination is unconventional. The nominee is unconventional, just like that New York developer who rode down the escalator in 2015 to announce his candidacy for president. That may be what makes Mr. Hegseth an excellent choice to improve this unacceptable status quo that I just described. He is a decorated post-9/11 combat veteran. He will inject a new warrior ethos into the Pentagon, a spirit that can cascade from the top down. Mr. Hegseth will bring energy and fresh ideas to shake up the bureaucracy. He will focus relentlessly on the warfighter and the military's core missions - deterring wars and winning the ones we must fight. He will bring a swift end to corrosive distractions such as DEI. Today, many simply acknowledge and live with the systemic problems I have mentioned earlier - in acquisition, accountability, technology transition, and organizational [and] civil service reform. Mr. Hegseth will actually move to fix these issues decisively. In short, I am confident that Mr. Hegseth - supported by a team of experienced top officials - will get the job done.

The Secretary of Defense is an incredibly important position, but the secretary's span of control is limited. The Pentagon is vast, with 3 million-plus personnel - uniformed, civilian, and contractor. A successful secretary understands that steering the ship means focusing his attention on strategic-level priorities. The secretary must be supported with exceptional subordinates who will run the day-to-day affairs of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Military Services, and the other DOD Components.

I am also confident that as an Infantryman, Mr. Hegseth understands the military principal of Commander's Intent: Communicate the clear objective, empower subordinates to use initiative and judgment, and hold everybody accountable.

We must not underestimate the importance of having a top-shelf communicator as secretary of defense. Other than the president, no official plays a larger role in telling the men and women in uniform, the Congress, and the public about the threats we face and the need for a "Peace Through Strength" defense policy. I have no doubt Mr. Hegseth will excel in a skill in which many of his predecessors have fallen short.

Much has been made of both Mr. Hegseth's personal life and some of his policy pronouncements. Regarding his personal conduct, Mr. Hegseth has admitted to falling short, as we all do from time to time. It is noteworthy that the vast majority of the accusations levelled at Mr. Hegseth have come from anonymous sources. Contrast these anonymous accusations with the many public letters of support and commendation. We have seen letters from people who served with Mr. Hegseth. These individuals have worked with him professionally. They really know him and his character. These patriotic Americans have been willing to put their names and reputations on the line to support Mr. Hegseth.

I look forward to sharing these testimonials with the American people. Let me mention one right now. It comes from David Bellavia, who earned the medal of honor for heroic actions in combat in Fallujah, Iraq. David Bellavia writes the following. "Pete is fearless, unflappable, and confronts conflicts head on. He is a leader to the core. When Pete is confirmed as the next Secretary of Defense of the United States of America, this country will finally know the privilege of having a true ambassador, able to speak on behalf of this generation and its two-decade Global War on Terror....Washington doesn't build men like Pete. Combat builds men like Pete."

As I said, there are more letters expressing the same endorsement. Today, we will hear from the nominee directly. I want to thank Mr. Hegseth, as well as his loved ones, for being here today. I look forward to discussing his nomination. And I look forward to hearing from Mr. Hegseth about the ways he hopes to rebuild the American strength that secures the peace.

And so now I turn to my friend and colleague, Ranking Member Reed, for his opening remarks.

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