PNN – A few days after Donald Trump announced his nominee for the post of Secretary of Defense, reports indicate that the TV personality is linked to the far-right white supremacist group and has been called a domestic threat.
According to the report of Pakistan News Network, from the Associated Press news agency, US Army National Guard veteran and Fox News host Pete Hegsett, Trump’s nominee for the post of Secretary of Defense, has been declared a “domestic threat” because of a tattoo on his arm associated with white supremacist groups.
Hexett, who has repeatedly downplayed the role of some military members and veterans in the January 6, 2021 uprising and has criticized the Pentagon’s subsequent efforts to combat extremism, has said that after this incident, he was removed from being a member of Joe Biden’s inauguration guard in January 2021.
But now, following the election of this television personality to the position of the head of the Pentagon, a member of the American National Guard, who was the security director of an anti-terrorism team at the time of his removal, in an email to the new head of this unit, a tattooed slogan with the title “Deus” “Volt” (a slogan used during the Crusades) on Hexett’s arm was associated with a fundamentalist group of white supremacists and emphasized that he was a domestic and insider threat.
Read more:
This person, who asked to remain anonymous, noted in this email: If Hexett becomes the head of the Pentagon, that means someone who is critical of the presence of military forces to deal with the January 6 rebellion and basically extremism will be chosen as the defense minister. Hexet has supported members of the military who are accused of war crimes and is also critical of the military justice system.
From 2017 to 2023, more than 480 people with military backgrounds have been charged with extremist crimes, including more than 230 arrested in connection with the January 6 uprising, according to an Associated Press investigation published last month.
According to this American news agency, Hexett is also among those who downplayed the January 6 riots, like many Trump supporters. He even called the crowd attacking the Congress building “patriotic” in a program on Fox News and said that they “love freedom.” They are people who love our country and have once again woken up to the reality of what the left party has done to their country.”
The nominee for the post of the Ministry of Defense has also argued in a book titled “War on Militants” published this year that the Pentagon has overreacted by taking steps to combat extremism and has blamed the department for removing people convicted of terrorism. The group of white supremacists and extremists has described it as violent. In his book, he noted that the efforts to eradicate extremism “have pushed the first-rate patriots out of their organizations.”
Pete Hegsett, who is said to be a US military veteran who has served in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay, was announced last week by US President-elect Donald Trump as a candidate for the post of the Department of Defense.