'Fanatical Dummy': Donald Trump Secretary of Defense Pick Pete Hegseth Slammed After His Controversial Views Go Viral

Donald Trump announced he'd nominated Fox News host and Army National Guard Major Pete Hegseth as the Secretary of Defense — but the pick was immediately criticized due to his lack of political experience and his controversial views.

"Pete has spent his entire life as a Warrior for the Troops, and for the Country," Trump wrote via Truth Social on Tuesday, November 12. "Pete is tough, smart and a true believer in America First. With Pete at the helm, America's enemies are on notice — Our Military will be Great Again, and America will Never Back Down."

A staunch conservative and Trump supporter, Hegseth has repeatedly slammed what he's referred to as the "warped, woke, and caustic policies of our current military" throughout his career.

The admiration appeared to go both ways throughout Trump's 2024 election campaign. At a June rally, the 78-year-old suggested his supporters should buy Hegseth's book before promising that if he won his bid for the White House, "The woke stuff will be gone within a period of 24 hours."

During a recent interview on "The Shawn Ryan Show" podcast, Hegseth also declared the military "should not have women in combat roles" at all.

"Everything about men and women serving together makes the situation more complicated, and complication in combat, means casualties are worse," he said. "It hasn't made us more effective, hasn't made us more lethal, has made fighting more complicated."

In his book, The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free, the major further criticized the Pentagon and Barack Obama for embracing "the social justice messages of gender equity, racial diversity, climate stupidity, and the LGBTQA+ alphabet soup in their recruiting pushes."

He also claimed he was called an "extremist" and removed from a security detail at President Joe Biden's inauguration due to several tattoos he had that were said to be connected to white nationalism.

"The feeling was mutual," he said. "I didn’t want this Army anymore either."

As excerpts from his book and past interviews circulated on social media, critics called Hegseth out for his polarizing views. One user penned, "Media personality as Secretary of Defense. A guy who is a fanatical dummy. Wow," and another added, "This is beyond stupid. But honestly I can't stop laughing. Like if this was a TV show, people would say f--- this is too made up.

Former Republican congressman Adam Kinzinger, who previously served as a lieutenant colonel in the Air National Guard, also posted: "Trump picking Pete Hegseth is the most hilariously predictably stupid thing."