Trump's pick for defense secretary had said he was one of 12 National Guards removed from Biden's inauguration because he was "deemed extremist."
www.newsweek.com
A prominent civil rights attorney has accused Peter Hegseth, the former
Fox News host nominated by
Donald Trump as defense secretary, of being "known to be a white supremacist."
Sherrilyn Ifill, former director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, made the remarks during an appearance on
MSNBC's
All In With Chris Hayes on Thursday while discussing
Trump's surprise pick of Hegseth for the key cabinet position, as well as
Matt Gaetz for attorney general. Hayes interjected to say that Hegseth would deny being a white supremacist.
Newsweek has contacted Hegseth via Fox News and the Trump campaign for comment via email.
Newsweek doesn't have evidence that he is a white supremacist.
The choices from Trump have raised concerns that the president-elect is deciding his next Cabinet based on loyalty rather than experience. Critics argue that Hegseth, who used to host
Fox & Friends Weekend on Sundays, has no senior command experience despite serving in the military. Hegseth was commissioned as an infantry officer in the Army National Guard, serving in Afghanistan and Iraq as well as at Guantanamo Bay, according to The Associated Press. He would leave the service with the rank of major.
"This is someone who is known to be a white supremacist, known to be an extremist, whose book is basically about his opposition to the advancement of Black officers to the top brass," Ifill told Hayes.
