A senator told Hegseth: "I suggest you do a little homework before you prepare for these types of negotiations."

Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for defense secretary, has publicly faced senators for the first time.

President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Defense Department sat for a Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday after hearings for Veterans’ Affairs Secretary nominee Doug Collins and Interior secretary nominee Doug Burgum were postponed.

U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy announced Friday that he would vote to confirm Pete Hegseth to lead the U.S. Department of Defense.

By Phil Stewart, Idrees Ali and Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President-elect Donald Trump's pick to lead the Pentagon, Pete Hegseth, endured fierce Democratic grilling over everything from his inexperience,

Donald Trump’s choice for defense secretary is heading into a potentially explosive Senate confirmation hearing.

During testimony in the United States Senate on Tuesday, Pete Hegseth, former Fox News personality turned president-elect Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Department of Defense, refused to answer a question regarding whether he’d follow an order from Trump to shoot at demonstrators.

Notably, Gabbard questioned the US intelligence community’s assessments that Assad was behind a deadly chlorine gas attack the same year she met with the Syrian strongman, to which Trump said at the time: “There can be no dispute that Syria used banned chemical weapons.”

Iowa Senator Joni Ernst announced that she would vote for Pete Hegseth to become Defense Secretary, making his path to Senate confirmation much easier.

Combat veteran and former Fox News host Pete Hegseth is among President-elect Trump's more controversial cabinet nominees.

Former Fox News host Pete Hegseth has come under fire for his inexperience, alleged drunkenness and past opposition to women in combat.