(NewsNation) — Retired four-star Army Gen. Wesley Clark believes much is to play out before, and during, President-elect Donald Trump’s appointment of Pete Hegseth as the next secretary of defense.
Clark joined “Morning in America” to discuss Hegseth’s elevation, which has been criticized by the media.
In an interview on “The Shawn Ryan Show” last week, Hegseth unequivocally said “We should not have women in combat roles.
“It hasn’t made us more effective, it hasn’t made us more lethal, has made fighting more complicated,” he added.
Clark believes women are more than capable of serving in combat. He noted that Hegseth will have to answer questions regarding the topic and more.
Pete Hegseth: What to know about Trump’s pick for Defense Secretary
“He’s got to have a degree of open-mindedness,” Clark told NewsNation.
“Things look different when you’re a captain looking up at a big organization, especially when you’re in counterinsurgency operations, and when you’re looking through the organization, you may find that your opinions are different, and if you hang on to them and try to enforce those prejudices, yeah, it could be some difficulties.”
Hegseth was part of an investigation into a sexual assault in 2017, according to the Monterey Police Department. Few details about the case have been released.
“You know, if he’s got these incidents behind him, does he represent the kind of ethics that we demand of our leaders in the military? And if he doesn’t, that’s a problem,” Clark added.