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Who is US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth? | BBC Americast
Posted
April 10, 2026
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April 10, 2026
248,081
3,341
699
1.63%
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22:20Now PlayingWhy has Hegseth fired top generals from the military, and how does he use religion to justify America’s war aims?
We look at the frontman for the US war in Iran, the former Fox News host, Pete Hegseth. A key feature of his Pentagon press briefings are his religious rhetoric, which may reveal the motivation behind his reforms of the U.S. military.
Despite only narrowly making it through the confirmation process to become defense secretary in the first place, Hegseth has become a key figure in the White House as he looks to reshape the Pentagon by rolling back on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies and removing many key figures at the top of the Pentagon.
In today’s episode of Americast, Justin and Anthony speak to Eric Schmitt from The New York Times, a longtime national security correspondent who recently left his press desk inside the Pentagon after refusing to accept new Trump administration rules that restrict their movements and who they can talk to.
Justin and Eric discuss the reasons why Donald Trump wanted Hegseth in post, the impact so far of the changes he’s making inside the Pentagon, and whether he’s eyeing up a presidential run of his own one day.
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