THE nomination of Pete Hegsetha Fox News host, former captain in the Army National Guard and President-elect Donald Trump’s surprising choice for defense secretary, has sparked concerns about his ability to manage a large department with a huge budget.

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Hegseth’s appointment also has many people wondering how his experience compares to that of people who have already served.

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THE The Department of Defense has a budget exceeding $800 billionwith approximately 1.3 million troops on active duty and an additional 1.4 million in the National Guard, reserves and civilian employees based around the world.

Fox anchor Pete Hegseth on “FOX & Friends” at the Fox News Channel studios on August 9, 2019 in New York. (Photo by John Lamparski/Getty Images)

Eric Edelman, who served as the Pentagon’s top policy official during the Bush administration, said Policy that Trump’s decision is likely weighed more on loyalty than on experience.

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“(Trump) places the highest value on loyalty,” Edelman said. “It seems that one of the main criteria used is to what extent do people defend Donald Trump on television?”

Who is Pete Hegseth?

A co-host of Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends Weekend,” Hegseth, 44, has been a contributor to the network for a decade. He is a staunch conservative and close friend of Trump, and has also written a number of books, including “The War on the Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free.”

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Pete Hegseth’s military experience

Hegseth served in the military, although he lacked military or national security experience.

After graduating from Princeton University in 2003, Hegseth was commissioned as an infantry captain in the Army National Guard, serving overseas in Afghanistan and Iraq as well as Guantanamo Bay. He received two Bronze Stars and a Combat Infantryman Badge.

Hegseth was once the head of Concerned Veterans for America, a group backed by conservative billionaires Charles and David Koch, and also ran unsuccessfully for the Minnesota Senate in 2012. According to his Fox News biography, he is the incumbent. a master’s degree in public policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

How does Pete Hegseth’s military experience compare?

If confirmed by the Senate, Hegseth would have by far the least military experience of any defense secretary in recent history. Here’s how his experience compares to those who have previously held this position.

Lloyd Austin

Formal portrait session of Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III, July 6, 2023. (DoD photo by Chad J. McNeeley)

Current Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has served in the Army for 41 years, including as commander at the corps, division, battalion and brigade level, according to the Department of Defense. Austin received the Silver Star for leading the Army’s 3rd Infantry Division during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Seven years later, he was named overall commanding officer of U.S. forces in Iraq, overseeing all combat operations in the country.

Austin served a tour as vice chief of staff of the Army before completing his uniformed service as commander of U.S. Central Command, responsible for all military operations in the Middle East and Afghanistan. After retiring from the military, Austin served on the boards of Raytheon Technologies, Nucor and Tenet Healthcare.

Marc Esper

Dr. Mark Esper, Acting Secretary of Defense, poses for his official portrait in the Army Portrait Studio at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, June 20, 2019. (U.S. Army photo by Monica King)

Before Austin was sworn in, Mark Esper served as Secretary of Defense from July 2019 to November 9, 2020. Trump fired Esper after he contradicted Trump on several issues. At the time, Esper was considered the least experienced Secretary of Defense in recent memory.

Esper graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1986, according to the Department of Defense. He served in the 101st Airborne Division and in the Gulf War from 1990 to 1991, then commanded a rifle company in Vicenza, Italy.

He retired from the U.S. Army in 2007 after spending 10 years on active duty and 11 years in the National Guard and Army Reserve. While in the military, Esper received the Department of Defense Medal for Distinguished Public Service, among many other awards and honors.

He also worked for former U.S. Senator Chuck Hagel and was a senior professional member of the Senate Foreign Relations and Governmental Affairs Committees, policy director of the House Armed Services Committee, and national security advisor to the former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist. He served as deputy assistant secretary of defense for negotiation policy at the Pentagon under former President George W. Bush.

Esper served as chief operating officer and executive vice president of defense and international affairs for the Aerospace Industries Association from 2006 to 2007. He served as national policy director for Senator Fred Thompson for his 2008 presidential campaign and Senate-appointed commissioner to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. Before being named secretary of the Army in 2017, Esper was vice president of government relations at Raytheon.

James Mattis

James N. Mattis, the 26th Secretary of Defense, poses for his official portrait in the Army Portrait Studio at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, January 25, 2017. (U.S. Army photo by Monica King/ released)

Former Defense Secretary James Mattis led the Pentagon under Trump before Esper. He resigned in 2019 after Trump announced he would withdraw U.S. forces from Syria. Like Austin, he served in the military for more than 40 years. Mattis commanded Marines at every level, from an infantry rifle platoon to a maritime expeditionary force, according to the Pentagon.

He led an infantry battalion in Iraq, an expeditionary brigade in Afghanistan, stability operations in Iraq, and served as commander of all U.S. Marine forces in the Middle East. He also served as Senior Military Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of Defense; Director of Marine Corps Manpower Plans and Policies; Commanding General of Marine Corps Combat Development Command and Executive Secretary to the Secretary of Defense.

Mattis also led U.S. Joint Forces Command, Supreme Allied Command for NATO Transformation, and U.S. Central Command.