Hegseth, on 1st day at Pentagon, says Defense’s job is US ‘sovereign territory’

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth arrived for his first day at the Pentagon on Monday with a message regarding the Department of Defense’s (DOD’s) mission. 

Greeted by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Charles Q. Brown Jr. and a gaggle of reporters, Hegseth said it was “an honor to serve on behalf of the president and serve on behalf of the country,” adding, “The warfighters are ready to go.” 

Hegseth quickly turned to the border crisis, acknowledging how President Donald Trump was “hitting the ground running” with executive orders declaring an emergency at the southern border and designating cartels foreign terrorist organizations. Hegseth said the DOD “snapped to” last week in sending more troops to aid in erecting barriers along the southern border, as well as to “ensure mass deportations,” adding: “That is something the Defense Department absolutely will continue to do.” 

“He’s made it very clear. There is an emergency at the border,” Hegseth said. “The protection of the sovereign territory of the United States is the job of the Defense Department.” 

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Last week, the Defense Department announced 1,500 active-duty service members and “additional air and intelligence assets” were being sent to the southern border “to augment troops already conducting enforcement operations in that region.”

When asked if more troops would be deployed to the border now that he is taking the helm, Hegseth said, “Whatever is needed at the border will be provided. Whether that is through state active duty, Title 32 or Title 10, because we are reorienting.” 

“This is a shift. This is not the way things have been done in the past,” Hegseth said. “The Defense Department will support the defense of the territorial integrity of the United States at the southern border to include reservists, National Guard and active duty with compliance with the Constitution, the laws of our land, and the directives of the commander in chief.” 

Hegseth, a combat veteran who deployed to Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, Iraq and Afghanistan, said he anticipated more executive orders from the White House later Monday. Those would include orders to remove diversity, equity and inclusion inside the Pentagon, reinstate troops who were “pushed out” over COVID-19 vaccine mandates and to implement the construction of an “Iron Dome for America,” Hegseth told reporters, vowing to comply with Trump’s directives “rapidly and quickly.” 

“Every moment I am here I am thinking about the guys and gals in Guam, in Germany, in Fort Benning, in Fort Bragg, on missile defense sites and aircraft carriers,” Hegseth said. “Our job is lethality and readiness and warfighting.” 

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“We hold people accountable. I know the chairman agrees with that,” Hegseth, who most recently was a Fox News host before Trump nominated him to lead the Defense Department, continued. “The lawful orders of the President of the United States will be executed in this Defense Department swiftly and without excuse. We will be no better friend to our allies and no stronger adversary for those who want to test us and try us.” 

When asked about a wristband he was wearing, Hegseth said he wore it every day to remember Jorge Oliveira, a soldier he served with in Guantánamo Bay when he was a platoon leader. Oliveira was later killed in Afghanistan while Hegseth was there in a separate unit. 

“It’s these guys that we do this for. Those who have given the ultimate sacrifice,” Hegseth said. 

The secretary was also asked about assistance for Afghans who worked with the U.S. government. Last week, Trump issued an executive order pausing all U.S. foreign development aid for 90 days pending an assessment into whether the funds align with his administration’s foreign policy. Reuters reported that flights for approximately 40,000 Afghans who were approved for special visas following former President Joe Biden’s botched withdrawal have been suspended as a result. 

“We are going to make sure there is accountability for what happened in Afghanistan, and we stand by our allies,” Hegseth said.