Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for defense secretary, penned on Wednesday an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, recounting his time as an Army officer, his efforts to get John McCain elected president in 2008, as well as his work campaigning on Capitol Hill for more troops in Iraq and his work with his veteran organization, Vets for Freedom.
The Iraq War veteran wrote the op-ed, focusing on his careers and leadership roles in both the civilian and military world, ostensibly to set the record straight and to fight against a "manufactured media takedown" of himself.
"I didn't know it at the time, but that op-ed launched my next mission — fighting for the warriors on the home front," Hegseth began, referring to an article he wrote 18 years ago under the plainly stated titled "More Troops, Please," which called on former President George W. Bush to send more troops to Iraq.
After returning home from the military, Hegseth took the helm at Vets for Freedom, an organization advocating for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans. He described the group as "young, bold, and battle-hardened," working tirelessly to support active-duty troops through advocacy on Capitol Hill. The group later became involved in the 2008 presidential election, backing Sen. John McCain's bid for the White House.
"In the 2008 election," he wrote, "we fought hard for John McCain to defeat Barack Obama. We were a bit naive, so we doubled down on our political spending at the very end, when other groups pulled back. It was a tactical mistake, which left us in debt (like most political campaigns). But I stayed with the organization until all the debt was paid off and outstanding contracts negotiated."
"Shortly thereafter, I volunteered — again — to deploy overseas, this time to Afghanistan while Mr. Obama was president," he added. "Fighting and winning our wars was never political to me. I wanted to do my part again; like many warriors of my generation, I found the battlefield had a recurring pull on my passions. But the war wasn’t going well, and we all knew it."
Hegseth concluded his piece on an optimistic note, expressing hope for a fair confirmation hearing: "I look forward to an honest confirmation hearing with our distinguished senators — not a show trial in the press."