Photos courtesy FOX Nation
FOX & Friends Weekend cohost Pete Hegseth, in addition to being a veteran, is also a high-profile advocate for veterans. Prior to joining FNC, Hegseth held the position of CEO for Concerned Veterans for America. Previously, he was an infantry Captain in the Army National Guard, and has served in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Guantanamo Bay. He holds two Bronze Stars and a Combat Infantryman Badge for his time in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Hegseth’s next big project is January 20th. Pete will host the Miseducation of America summit in Richmond, Virginia. The summit will feature conversations with Louden County Parents and educators along with education leaders. In addition, Pete will release a five-part series on FOX Nation on January 18th, also entitled the Miseducation of America.
South’s contributing editor, Mindy Scarlett caught up with Hegseth for a quick Q+A.
South: What made you decide to join the military?
Pete Hegseth: The decision really was just a desire to do my part. I didn’t come from a military family, but I did grow up in a wonderful patriotic Christian home that revered the military and law enforcement. My family would go to Memorial Day and Veterans Day parades and it really was just seeing the honor that was given to the men and women who had served. So, my thinking was that if I’m granted the opportunity and as an able bodied guy then I should do my part. I joined ROTC in college right before 9/11, and then 9/11 was the ultimate validator of that decision. It’s the best thing I’ve ever done in my life and I’m so grateful for the people I’ve met, and the part we played, but like so many others there’s always the next chapter.
S: What was your ‘next chapter’ after the military?
PH: When I left active duty after serving in Iraq and Afghanistan, I joined a veterans advocacy organization. I think it is very important to help vets find their next chapter and their purpose as a civilian. It’s clear what your purpose is when you’re in the military and you’re part of a team and you have a shared mission but coming home and transitioning to the civilian world is a challenge. So, I was happy to join an advocacy group that was focused on this mission.
S: What do you think is the answer for how veteran’s services should be handled?
PH: Everyone always says more money is needed and we’re always another billion away from a VA that works. Unfortunately, the VA is a giant government bureaucracy that treats vets like numbers and not like customers. Ultimately, in lieu of the VA, I think that private organizations connecting with vets for metal health and employment will provide the best outcome. There’s no one size fits all, and [vets] will become future business leaders and innovators leading into the next generation, so I think ultimately it needs to be vets pulling up other vets.
S: What do you think is important for the US military going forward?
PH: It is important for young people to want to make America safer, so how we can help them going forward is important. I want them to be going into a Pentagon or into a military that is serious and prepared to train and fight and win wars, and there are a lot of concerns about the disposition of our military. Also, are we teaching the next generation to love America? The education of kids is central. We can have all the aircraft carriers we want but if we’re teaching kids in our schools that America is the bad guy then we won’t be prepared to muster a collective defense in the future when we need it so, our civic education is the health of our nation.
S: Did you plan to end up with a media career?
PH: No, I did not! I was asked by FOX to comment on veteran’s issues and that just opened up other opportunities. Getting into media was very much accidental, but I think the background I had in the military and advocacy throughout the country has been helpful, as I bring firsthand experience to the television screen.
S: What is the most unusual moment in your media career?
PH: The beauty of FOX & Friends is that it is based on what happened very recently. So, news breaks and the whole show that you had planned changes, and it becomes four hours of live response to something you didn’t anticipate, and you’re learning along with the audience the events that are happening! I would say probably the most unusual thing I have done would be swimming across the Hudson River with Navy seals on live television.
S: What has been the most exciting time for you in the media?
PH: We were at a diner in Ohio the morning of the 2016 election, and just to feel the electricity of the crowd was really something. We were asking undecided voters which way they were going to vote and many of them were truly undecided. I was earnestly interested in what they cared about, and which way they were going to vote. You can’t deny the electricity of election night and trying to get your finger on the pulse of the American people.
S: You just hosted the FOX Nation Patriot Awards. What are your future plans?
PH: I love the FOX Nation Patriot Awards. I think it’s the best assignment that I have ever had, and I was absolutely honored to host it for the third time this year. I think it’s the award show that America deserves and that our heroes deserve. Award shows are traditionally reserved for so-called celebrities who play heroes on TV, but the Patriot Awards are for real heroes who never expected to be on TV. They weren’t doing it for the money, they weren’t doing it for the fame, they were doing it for love of country and love of community, and the duty and honor that they embody, and so it’s just such a motivating and inspiring evening. It reminds you why you’re proud to be an American.
I also have my next book coming out in June called The Battle for the American Mind. It is about the 100-year progressive takeover of our education system, and I think education of the next generation is something that we’ve taken our eye off the ball too many times.
About Pete Hegseth
Pete Hegseth currently serves as the co-host of FOX & Friends Weekend (Saturdays and Sundays (6-10AM/ET), the weekend edition of the number one rated morning show on television. In addition, Hegseth is also a host on FOX Nation, where he hosts the series Modern Warriors, where he is often joined by fellow veterans in order to break down current issues from a military perspective.
FOX News Books releasedModern Warriors: Real Stories from Real Heroes by Pete Hegseth, building on the success of Hegseth’s popular FOX Nation series, Modern Warriors. The book showcased some of the nation’s most highly-decorated veterans as they share their war stories, combat moments, thoughts on military morale today, and why they served. Earning two Bronze Stars and a Combat Infantryman Badge for his time served in the Army National Guard, Hegseth will also detail his experience on the front lines in Afghanistan and Iraq.
He is a native of Minneapolis, Minnesota, and now resides in Holmdel in Monmouth County, New Jersey with his wife and seven children.
Pete Hegseth is also the author of the highly acclaimed books, American Crusade and In the Arena.
Pete is an Army veteran of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and was a guard at Guantanamo Bay. He holds two Bronze Stars and a Combat Infantryman’s Badge for his time in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Pete graduated from Princeton University in 2003 with an undergraduate degree in politics. While at Princeton, Pete was also a member of the varsity basketball team, an Army ROTC cadet, and the publisher of the campus conservative publication—The Princeton Tory. A decade later, Pete completed a Master’s in Public Policy at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School.
Pete Hegseth also hosted the third annual Patriot Awards on Wednesday, November 17th at Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Florida. A link to the stream on FOX Nation can be found here:
About FOX Nation:
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