Trump builds out national security team with picks of Hegseth for Pentagon, Noem for DHS

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump moved to build out his national security team Tuesday, announcing he is nominating Fox News host and Army veteran Pete Hegseth to serve as his defense secretary and former Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe to lead the Central Intelligence Agency.

In a flurry of announcements, Trump said he had chosen former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee as ambassador to Israel and his longtime friend Steven Witkoff to be a special envoy to the Middle East. Trump also said he would nominate South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem to run the Department of Homeland Security and named Bill McGinley, his Cabinet secretary in his first administration, as his White House counsel.

Trump is rolling out a steady stream of appointees and nominees for his upcoming administration, working thus far at a faster pace and without as much drama as his first transition following his 2016 victory. His selection of Hegseth, who lacks senior military or national security experience, was sure to draw questions about his qualifications to lead the department.

Hegseth, 44, is a co-host of Fox News Channel’s “Fox & Friends Weekend” and has been a contributor with the network since 2014, where he developed a friendship with Trump, who made regular appearances on the show.

If confirmed by the Senate, he would inherit the top job during a series of global crises — ranging from Russia’s war in Ukraine and the ongoing attacks in the Middle East by Iranian proxies to the push for a cease-fire between Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah and escalating worries about the growing alliance between Russia and North Korea.

Hegseth is also the author of “The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men Who Keep Us Free," published earlier this year, and has been outspoken about rooting out what he has called “woke-ness” in the military.

The book, according to its promo, combines “his own war experiences, tales of outrage, and an incisive look at how the chain of command got so kinked,” and bills itself as “the key to saving our warriors — and winning future wars.”

While the Pentagon is considered a key coveted post in any administration, the defense secretary was a tumultuous post during Trump’s first term. Five men held the job during his four years only to resign, be fired or serve briefly as a stopgap. Just two of them were actually confirmed by the Senate.

Trump’s relationship with his civilian and military leaders during those years was fraught with tension, confusion and frustration, as they struggled to temper or even simply interpret presidential tweets and pronouncements that blindsided them with abrupt policy decisions they weren’t prepared to explain or defend. Many of the generals who worked in his first administration — both on active duty and retired — have slammed him as unfit to serve in the Oval Office and he has condemned them in return.

Hegseth was an infantry captain in the Army National Guard and served overseas in Afghanistan, Iraq and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He was formerly head of the Concerned Veterans for America, a group backed by conservative billionaires Charles and David Koch, and he unsuccessfully ran for the Senate in Minnesota in 2012.

He also championed the case of four former Blackwater contractors convicted in a 2007 shooting rampage in Baghdad that killed more than a dozen Iraqi civilians. They were pardoned by Trump in one of his final acts in office.

“With Pete at the helm, America’s enemies are on notice — Our Military will be Great Again, and America will Never Back Down,” Trump said in a statement. “Nobody fights harder for the Troops, and Pete will be a courageous and patriotic champion of our ‘Peace through Strength’ policy."

Hegseth has “an excellent background as a junior officer but does not have the senior national security experience that secretaries need,” said Mark Cancian, a senior advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “I think Trump was tired of fighting with his secretaries of defense and picked one who would be loyal to him.” Cancian said the lack of experience might make it more difficult for Hegseth to get through Senate confirmation.

Noem is a well-known conservative and former member of Congress who used her two terms leading a state to vault to a prominent position in Republican politics. She was considered a potential presidential contender herself, but declined to challenge Trump. She instead launched an overt pitch to be selected vice president but lost that nod when Trump chose JD Vance as his running mate.

If confirmed, Noem would head an agency that is at the center of Trump’s sweeping immigration plans and his campaign vow to carry out mass deportations of immigrants in the United States illegally. There are an estimated 11 million people in the country illegally.

The Department of Homeland Security is a sprawling agency of 260,000 employees created in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks with a vast area of responsibility. It was patched together from 22 various agencies with the weighty task of preventing future attacks and is the subject of constant suggestions that it is too unwieldy and should be broken up.

Ratcliffe, a former Republican congressman from Texas, served as director of national intelligence for the final months of Trump’s first term, leading the U.S. government’s spy agencies during the coronavirus pandemic. He is a more traditional pick for the role, which requires Senate confirmation, than some rumored loyalists pushed by some of Trump's supporters.

Huckabee is a staunch defender of Israel, and his intended nomination comes as Trump has promised to align U.S. foreign policy more closely with Israel’s interests as it wages wars against Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Witkoff is a Florida real estate investor who is serving as a chair of Trump’s inaugural committee. He also spent time in the world of New York real estate, where Trump first made his mark as a public figure.

As intelligence director, Ratcliffe was criticized by Democrats for declassifying in the final days of the 2020 presidential election Russian intelligence alleging damaging information about Democrats during the 2016 race even though he acknowledged it might not be true.

Ratcliffe's visibility rose as he emerged in 2019 as an ardent defender of Trump during the House’s first impeachment proceedings against him. He was a member of Trump’s impeachment advisory team and strenuously questioned witnesses during the impeachment hearings.

After the Democratic-controlled House voted to impeach Trump, Ratcliffe said, “This is the thinnest, fastest and weakest impeachment our country has ever seen.” He also forcefully questioned former special counsel Robert Mueller when he testified before the House Judiciary Committee about his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election.

“I look forward to John being the first person ever to serve in both of our Nation’s highest Intelligence positions,” Trump said in a statement. “He will be a fearless fighter for the Constitutional Rights of all Americans, while ensuring the Highest Levels of National Security, and PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH.”

Huckabee has led paid tour group visits to Israel for years, frequently advertising the trips on conservative-leaning news outlets.

“Mike has been a great public servant, Governor, and Leader in Faith for many years,” Trump said in a statement. “He loves Israel, and the people of Israel, and likewise, the people of Israel love him. Mike will work tirelessly to bring about Peace in the Middle East!”

David Friedman, who served as Trump's ambassador to Israel in his first term, said he was “thrilled” by Trump's selection of Huckabee.

Witkoff is also the president-elect’s golf partner and was with him when he was the target of a second assassination attempt at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida, in September.

Trump's transition team did not offer details about the Middle East envoy role, but Trump said in a statement, “Steve will be an unrelenting Voice for PEACE, and make us all proud.”

The selection of Witkoff follows a pattern for Trump in putting people close to him in pivotal roles on the Middle East portfolio. Eight years ago he appointed his former corporate attorney Jason Greenbaltt as his special representative for international negotiations and relied on his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as his personal envoy in talks in the region.

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Miller reported from Washington and Colvin reported from New York. Lolita C. Baldor, Rebecca Santana and Tara Copp in Washington contributed.