Pete Hegseth wants warriors, readiness and lethality above all else

Pete Hegseth shined today during his more than four-hour audition to become Secretary of Defense. From the outset, he spoke of his mission to restore the warrior ethos to the Pentagon, rebuild the military, and restore deterrence on the world stage.

PETE HEGSETH: “When President Trump selected me for this position, the main mission he gave me was to bring back the warrior culture to the Department of Defense. Like me, he wants a Pentagon the laser focus has been on lethality, meritocracy, accountability, and preparedness for war. // He believes, and I humbly agree, that it is time to hand over the rudder to someone with dust on their boots – an agent of change.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – AUGUST 09: Fox anchor Pete Hegseth interviews entrepreneur and venture capitalist Peter Thiel during “FOX & Friends” at Fox News Channel Studios on August 09, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by John Lamparski/Getty Images) (John Lamparski/Getty Images)

Rather than another bureaucrat, or even a high-ranking general, or someone from the military-industrial boardroom, Mr Hegseth would be a soldier’s Defense Secretary – emphasizing his ‘dust on boots’ experience on the battlefield. Listen:

PETE HEGSETH: “I’ve led troops into combat. I’ve patrolled for days. I’ve pulled the trigger, heard bullets pass, flex, handcuffed insurgents, called in close air support, conducted a medical evacuation, dodged EEI, removed myself from the corpses and knelt before a cross on a battlefield. This is not academic for me.

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Standards will be high in a Hegseth Pentagon, but awakening and DEI will be very low.

Hegseth, a highly decorated veteran who served in combat zones in Afghanistan and Iraq, has repeatedly said he wants warriors, readiness and lethality above all else. Here’s another excerpt from today:

PETE HEGSETH: “We won World War II with seven four-star generals. Today we have 44 four-star generals. There is an inverse relationship between the size of staffs and victory on the battlefield. We don’t need more bureaucracy at the top. We need more fighters with grassroots power. »

There will be tax audits to cut waste, but there will also be targeted spending increases in areas like military ships and the nuclear deterrent, and elsewhere.

And all the Democrats could do, for over four hours, was attack him personally – citing anonymous smears that have never been proven.

The Democrats were incredibly partisan. Not a single one showed support for Hegseth. And none of the Democrats acknowledged Biden’s failures in Afghanistan, or Russia-Ukraine, or appeasement of Iran, or tepid support for Israel, or stand up to China.

One of the themes of the November election was the importance of change – in the economy, in illegal immigration, and in foreign policy, where suddenly, under Joe Biden, the world is now on fire .

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Hegseth will be an unconventional change agent at the Pentagon. A disruptor, even. This is what the country wants. And he is also a man of faith who, like all of us, has made mistakes in the past. But like all of us sinners, he strives to change himself. Listen:

PETE HEGSETH: “I am not a perfect person, as has been recognized, saved by the grace of God, by Jesus and Jenny. I am not a perfect person, but redemption is real, and God has wrought me with a way that I know I’m ready for.”

I love it, I love it. And my holy wife knows a thing or two about it herself. And that’s the riff.

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This article is adapted from Larry Kudlow’s opening commentary in the January 14, 2025 edition of “Kudlow.”