House Democrat ‘very disturbed’ by Hegseth pick as Trump Defense secretary

Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) said he was "very disturbed" by President-elect Trump's announcement Tuesday that he is choosing Pete Hegseth, an Army veteran and Fox News host, to head the Defense Department.

"I'm shocked, truly, and this is exactly what we worried about when we warned about Donald Trump, which is that he is going to appoint unqualified loyalists to shape this government into his own personal fiefdom," Goldman told CNN's Erin Burnett Tuesday on "Out Front."

"I appreciate Mr. Hegseth's service in our Armed Forces, but being a serviceman does not make you qualified to lead the dep of defense and to have access to our nuclear weapons," he added in the interview, highlighted by Mediaite. "I'm very disturbed by this and I'm very concerned about what it demonstrates about Donald Trump's priorities."

The New York Democrat's comments come during a time of global unrest, with war in Ukraine and the Middle East , an increasingly belligerent North Korea and Iran, and China — which continues to threaten Taiwan and encroach on contested areas in the Indo-Pacific.

Hegseth, who served as an infantry captain in the Army National Guard and did tours in Afghanistan and Iraq, was a somewhat surprising choice as his name was not floated among those likely to be considered as Pentagon chief.

More well-known figures like House Armed Services Chair Mike Rogers (R-Ala), Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) — an Army National Guard veteran — and other Trump allies that held previous positions in the Defense Department during his first term.

"Nobody fights harder for the Troops, and Pete will be a courageous and patriotic champion of our 'Peace through Strength' policy," Trump, who was declared the winner of the 2024 election just last week, said in his announcement.

The president-elect is expected to transform the U.S. military when he returns to the White House in January, with promises to slash spending, thin the top ranks and roll back efforts to make the military more inclusive to transgender and women soldiers.

The Hill has contacted the Trump campaign for comment.