By New York Post (Politics) | Created at 2025-01-07 20:31:34 | Updated at 2025-01-08 17:03:26
20 hours ago
Sen. Elizabeth Warren strongly suggested that there are concerns that Army veteran Pete Hegseth could be an “insider threat” due to his Christian tattoo and seethed over his crusade against woke military policies in a blistering missive to the defense secretary designee.
While outlining over 70 questions to Hegseth and giving him four days to reply, Warren made clear that she sees him as “unfit” to helm the Pentagon and teased a fiery showdown when he appears before the Senate Armed Services Committee next week.
“I am deeply concerned by the many ways in which your behavior and rhetoric indicates that you are unfit to lead the Department of Defense,” Warren, 75, wrote in the 33-page letter to Hegseth sent late Monday.
“Your confirmation as Secretary of Defense would be detrimental to our national security and disrespect a diverse array of servicemembers who are willing to sacrifice for our country.”
Strikingly, the Massachusetts Democrat latched onto dubious concerns about a Deus Vult tattoo on Hegseth’s bicep, a Latin phrase that translates to “God wills it.”
Warren pointed to a Reuters article recounting how a National Guard master sergeant believed the former Fox News host could be an “insider threat.” That master sergeant had done a quick internet search and determined that the tattoo had links to right-wing extremism and had been a battle cry for the Crusaders.
National Guard leadership then pushed Hegseth out from serving during President Biden’s inauguration day. Notably, top brass had been on high alert at the time in the wake of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
Despite religious scholars later countering that the Deus Vult is often considered a common Christian symbol, Warren contended that the fact that his superiors were concerned about the tattoo raises questions about whether he could be the Pentagon chief.
“You were also removed from President Biden’s inauguration because of concerns that you were an insider threat after reports that your ‘Deus Vult’ tattoo ‘was a Christian expression associated with right-wing extremism,'” she wrote to Hegseth.
“We cannot have a Defense Secretary whose fellow servicemembers feel concerned enough about to report as a potential insider threat.”
Warren, who is the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Service subcommittee on personnel, also lashed out at Hegseth for musing about firing top military brass who were involved in key failures such as the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan.
The Massachusetts progressive argued that military leaders shouldn’t be held responsible for failures on the battleground if they were the result of decisions made by politicians.
“Anyone nominated to your position should know that civilians establish policies that are then carried out by the military,” Warren sternly stressed to Hegseth. “I am concerned by proposals to hold military leaders responsible for policy decisions made by civilian leaders.”
President-elect Donald Trump has previously announced that he would ask “all generals” involved in the botched Afghanistan withdrawal to resign by noon on his Inauguration Day.
Warren fretted that Hegseth would likely be on board with that and also assailed his criticism of the Defense Department’s woke initiatives as well as its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies.
Hegseth has publicly called for the firing of top military brass who were “involved in any of the DEI/woke s–t,” arguing that the Pentagon needs to be depoliticized.
“Purging top military leadership based on their political views would represent a direct threat to the norms
and institutions that uphold the Defense Department and civil-military relations,” she wrote.
While railing against Hegseth over the prospect of him backing Trump’s potential efforts to “purge” ineffective or woke military leaders, Warren asked Hegseth to provide a list of those he’d consider firing. She also asked him to state whether he wants the Pentagon to “remain an apolitical institution.”
Warren also broached other controversies surrounding Hegseth such as accusations of sexual misconduct — which he has denied — and anonymous accusations of him being a heavy drinker, something that he has denied and his former Fox News colleagues have rejected on the record.
At one point, Warren pressed Hegseth for his views on the 2020 election and argued that the defense secretary-designee needs to reassure senators that he’s not delusional.
“We cannot have a Secretary of Defense who is peddling conspiracy theories and making claims that are devoid of reality,” she said.
Brian Hughes, a Trump transition spokesperson, slammed Warren’s missive and told The Post that “Hegseth looks forward to answering senators’ questions and detailing his many qualifications.”
“Sen. Warren’s letter to Pete Hegseth is exactly what the American voters rejected on Nov. 5. Instead of focusing on ‘woke’ policies that have weakened our national defense, the voters gave a mandate to rebuild our military, and that’s exactly what a reform-minded Secretary of Defense like Pete Hegseth will do,” the spox said.
“Senator Warren’s letter proves why ideologically driven college professors have no place driving their social agenda at the Department of Defense.”
Hegseth has emerged as one of Trump’s most endangered administration picks but now has seemingly eased concerns from many skeptical Republican senators such as Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa).
To get the job, Hegseth will first need to clear the Senate Armed Services Committee, where he is likely to face stiff opposition from Democrats. Then, he must get confirmed by the full Senate.
