Pete Hegseth is an American television host, author, and military veteran. He is most famously known for his role as the co-host of Fox News’ Fox & Friends Weekend. Pete was born on June 6, 1980, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Having built a highly successful career both in media and military service, he is a well-known face among conservatives.
Early life and education
Hegseth attended Princeton University and graduated in 2003 with a politics degree before heading to the Army National Guard, where he was commissioned as an infantry officer. His education thus prepared him for later roles in military and political commentary.
Military service
Hegseth served his military career in service to Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2004, Hegseth was deployed as an infantry platoon leader to Guantanamo Bay. Later, he served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. While serving in the Army National Guard, Hegseth received many honors, including two Bronze Stars and a Combat Infantryman Badge-one that testifies to his gallantry under combat conditions.
His military time gave way to leadership within veterans’ advocacy groups. He also served as chief executive at Concerned Veterans for America and focused on issues impacting veterans and their families. Much of Hegseth’s work often bleeds into his media presence and vice versa, providing him an outlet to drill his message home in terms of veterans’ rights and military policy.
Media career
Hegseth joined Fox News as a contributor back in 2014, but soon one became accustomed to seeing him all the time. He now co-hosts Fox & Friends Weekend and frequently guest hosts programs airing on The Five, Hannity, and The Ingraham Angle. A good deal of his commentary features conservative ideas regarding national security and military affairs, to which an enormous audience respectfully listens because he is a veteran.
But aside from the television career, Hegseth is also an avid author. American Crusade, Modern Warriors, and most recently, The War on Warrior, some of his titles addressing patriotism, serving in the military, and the ills affecting America today took center stage. His works have called sufficient attention to himself to the extent that he was able to place several titles on the New York Times bestselling list.
Connections to Donald Trump
Speaking of giant cogs, the other huge cog in Hegseth’s career has been his relationship with former President Donald Trump. Then President Trump has similarly heaped praise upon Hegseth for his military analysis and resolute conservative convictions. That relationship made him the subject of speculation early in Trump’s presidency about potential jobs within the administration.
In November 2024, Trump announced that he was naming Hegseth Secretary of Defense. Trump praised him as “tough, smart, and a true believer in America First,” and made clear that on Hegseth’s watch, the military would go back to being strong again and foes would get put on notice. The nomination is striking not only because Hegseth is 44 but also because he doesn’t have the years of high-ranking military or national security experience that Defense secretaries typically boast.
Controversies and advocacy
Throughout his career, Hegseth has never been afraid of controversy. He has repeatedly called for the pardoning of U.S. service members who have been accused of war crimes on multiple occasions. Further still, he used his platform to voice public support for those accused. This directly aligns with Trump’s own actions during his presidency when he granted pardons to a number of service members involved in high-profile cases.
Second, Hegseth’s views tend to go in a much more conservative direction in such a way that his take does condemn liberal policies on national security and military intervention. His positions at times draw the ire of opponents of his stances on veterans’ issues and military conduct.
