As President-elect Donald Trump announces his cabinet picks, the liberal media is predictably going into overdrive, with Trump’s anti-establishment selections leaving commentators in a state of panic.
Among the most controversial choices? Fox News host and decorated veteran Pete Hegseth, nominated as Secretary of Defense—a selection that CNN’s Van Jones described as “alarming.” Jones, who wasted no time decrying the pick, argued that Hegseth’s appointment would “create problems” in a system he insists is functioning just fine.
Jones took particular issue with the notion that the U.S. military needs reform, dismissing Trump’s plans for strengthening the military as “fiction.”
But as Trump’s supporters and many military experts argue, the U.S. armed forces face serious challenges in recruitment, readiness, and focus, and these challenges aren’t just minor flaws—they’re pressing issues that require bold leadership. Under current policies, the military has struggled with recruitment so significantly that the Navy raised the maximum enlistment age, and the Army began auto-promoting captains to major.
Meanwhile, three out of four young Americans are ineligible to serve due to issues like obesity or health waivers. Critics argue that, rather than addressing these real and growing problems, past administrations have been more focused on pushing social issues, including policies around transgender enlistment, than on bolstering core military readiness.
CNN’s Van Jones describes the nomination of Pete Hegseth for Defense Secretary as “frightening.”
“The idea that our military, there’s something wrong with it, our generals are terrible. This is a fiction” pic.twitter.com/wvE3fkxGsq
— Cullen McCue (@CullenMcCue) November 13, 2024
Hegseth, unlike typical Washington insiders, has real, boots-on-the-ground experience. A former Army National Guard officer, he served in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Guantanamo Bay, receiving two Bronze Stars and working firsthand with soldiers. His critics, however, focus more on his role as a Fox News host than his years of military experience, implying that his media role somehow disqualifies him from leading the nation’s armed forces.
Jones and others see Hegseth’s anti-bureaucratic stance as a threat to the “status quo,” viewing his mission to streamline and refocus the military as something that could shake up a longstanding, comfortable bureaucracy.
The reality is, Hegseth’s appointment represents a fundamental shift. Trump’s administration appears committed to shaking off business as usual in Washington. For too long, critics argue, defense policy has been bogged down by a DC establishment more concerned with public relations than military efficacy.
Hegseth’s role could bring a new era to the Pentagon—one that focuses on readiness, discipline, and a return to core military values rather than bureaucratic entanglement.
