Trump’s defence secretary pick Hegseth clueless about Asean at confirmation hearing

WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 14: U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth departs after a Senate Armed Services confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill on January 14, 2025 in Washington, DC. Hegseth, an Army veteran and the former host of "FOX & Friends Weekend" on FOX News will be the first of the incoming Trump administration's nominees to face questions from Senators. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Andrew Harnik / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

Mr Pete Hegseth has been the subject of media stories documenting his foibles.

PHOTO: AFP

Bhagyashree Garekar

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WASHINGTON – It certainly wasn’t the toughest question, nor the tensest moment, during the Jan 14 confirmation hearing for incoming US president Donald Trump’s nominee for defence secretary.

But

an exchange of less than two minutes

– centred on Asean, unexpectedly – resulted in embarrassment for Mr Pete Hegseth and fuelled questions about his competence.

Trump’s defence secretary pick Hegseth clueless about Asean at confirmation hearing

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