Jeh Johnson: Hegseth Is ‘Intelligent,’ Chose Country Over Wealth, I Give Him ‘Benefit of the Doubt’ as a Pick for Now

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On Thursday’s “CNN News Central,” former DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson said that secretary of defense nominee Pete Hegseth should be scrutinized for his positions and rhetoric, and being a cable news host doesn’t automatically qualify someone for the position, but he gives Hegseth “the benefit of the doubt on at least the nomination, at this point, because here’s somebody who is well-educated, obviously intelligent,” and Hegseth “could have made a lot of money” in finance, but “chose to leave that, put on the uniform of our country, and see combat.”

Johnson said, “I give him the benefit of the doubt on at least the nomination, at this point, because here’s somebody who is well-educated, obviously intelligent, was in financial services, was in the Wall Street community for a while, could have made a lot of money and chose to leave that, put on the uniform of our country, and see combat. So, I give him the benefit of the doubt for that reason. Being — with all due respect — being a cable news host does not necessarily qualify you to be secretary of defense. And, so, again, this is a nomination where the Senate has a duty to scrutinize the things that he has said, the positions he has taken, the positions he has taken with respect to those who have been found responsible for war crimes.”

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