From AF’s Redstate citation at 11:48 pm: “I wish he’d been stronger on the subject of post-service employment by a Defense contractor.”

I think his reply should have been along the lines of “Senator, I favor the same restrictions on post service employment for the senior DOD and military leadership as should apply to the members of Congress and their senior staffers.”

Clearly it was to show he didn’t respect military officers.

He nailed the answer though.

Nope. No quotas at all.

The lessons they learned from this defeat:
be even MORE shameless, MORE mendacious, MORE outrageous, MORE hysterical apparatchiks.

MORE DISGUSTING.

One wouldn’t have believed that it were possible.

One would have been wrong.

** Which would already have been well known to anyone paying attention (or not totally brainwashed), particularly after the Kavanaugh atrocity…but of course even far before that odious chapter in Congressional history.

https://redstate.com/streiff/2025/01/14/pete-hegseths-confirmation-hearing-starts-in-30-minutes-this-is-what-you-need-to-know-n2184315

He covered most of the exchanges that have made the sound-bites playlist, and a couple which haven’t.

https://redstate.com/streiff/2025/01/14/pete-hegseth-brings-his-a-game-and-gets-the-job-done-n2184351

It is difficult to get away from the feeling that the Democrats knew they had nothing to stop him, so they resorted to smearing him as much as possible before he takes office.

Hegseth came across weakest on the complaint that he’d refused to engage in one-on-one meetings with any of the Democrats other than the ranking member. His reason for doing so was obvious. The substance of any conversation would be lied about or distorted, and the conversation would give the Democrats a chance to test how he would respond to questions. Hegseth unconvincingly passed this off as “scheduling conflicts” because you can’t very well try to come across as bipartisan while revealing that you don’t trust the Democrats.

I wish he’d been stronger on the subject of post-service employment by a Defense contractor. Had Warren not been so eager to score points, she might have inflicted some damage.

Hegseth got a lot of help from the Republican side, with Oklahoma’s Markwayne Mullin delivering the hardest blow.

MUST WATCH: Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s FULL remarks in defense of Pete Hegseth. Powerful. Absolute masterclass. pic.twitter.com/sr2ugX4T6Y

— Charlie Kirk (@charliekirk11) January 14, 2025
You have to listen to this to fully appreciate it.

In terms of optics, Hegseth was polite, responsive, and telegenic. He was able to successfully filibuster during some particularly nasty personal attacks and not look flustered or angry. In terms of intelligence, he may very well have been one of the two or three smartest guys in the room. He was not some weary, gray little man looking for that final big job before landing the seven or eight-figure corporate board sinecure; Hegseth came across as a man who can bring the warrior ethos back to the Pentagon. He successfully packaged (in my view) his past personal troubles as a redemption story. I think he was able to distinguish between his respect for women serving in the Armed Forces and his antipathy toward them serving in direct combat units. I came away believing that with the right deputies and service secretaries, Hegseth just might be able to undo 16 years of damage.

Bottom line: Hegseth did what he needed to do to get committee approval though that approval will probably be on a very rigid party line. He may lose a Republican in the floor vote (looking at Utah’s John Curtis), and I think we can count on Lisa Murkowski voting with the Democrats. Worst casing it, JD Vance will have to break a tie.

And in re the complaints about him being a super-terrorist (aka Christian) because tattoos!

https://accordingtohoyt.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/phcross.jpeg?w=641

As for “politicizing the military” (which the Democrats have done to the extreme, but they insist that doesn’t count if THEY do it, only if someone wants to unravel their disasters), maybe we need some changes in priorities:
https://accordingtohoyt.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/wounded.png?w=640

And the last word goes to the Babylon Bee.
https://accordingtohoyt.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/20250109_145713.jpg?w=749

Is he qualified? Is anybody actually qualified to be Sec Def? It’s a huge job with many moving parts. Anyone who has held it has had to rely on an army of subordinates and advisors to guide him. Pete knows this, and his strong desire to put the mission of combat lethality foremost will make a huge difference in getting our military back on track. I hope he’s confirmed.