- Jeff Sharlet @ Religion Dispatches: Meet Pete Hegseth, the Man Who Will Lead the Entire US Military — A Man Deemed an ‘Extremist’ by the US Military
Hegseth’s first tattoo, he says, was of a cross with a blade to represent Matthew 10:34, a cherry-picked vision of Jesus-as-warrior popular with Christian nationalists: “I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.” On his chest he’s had inked a “Jerusalem cross”—a symbol of the crusaders’ holy war against Muslims and Jews.
- Annika Brockschmidt and Thomas Lecaque @ The Bulwark: What’s the Deal With Pete Hegseth’s Crusader Tattoos?
Donald Trump’s potential secretary of defense hasn’t been straightforward about the violent symbolism of his ink.
- Hunter Walker @ Talking Points Memo: Trump’s Pick For Defense Sec Spent His College Years Crusading Against ‘Glorification of Diversity’ And ‘The Homosexual Lifestyle’
Pete Hegseth, the Army National Guard veteran, and former Fox News weekend host and President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Defense, experienced a political awakening at Princeton University.
- Ian Millhiser @ Vox: Matt Gaetz, Trump’s uniquely unqualified pick for attorney general, explained
Gaetz is a reckless pick even by Trump’s standards.
- Edith Olmstead @ The New Republic: Matt Gaetz’s Sudden Resignation Sure Makes Him Look Guilty
The Florida representative just resigned from Congress—killing a House Ethics investigation on his alleged sexual misconduct and illicit drug use.
- Alex Galbraith @ Salon: "Every single word": GOP Rep. Nehls promises to pass anything on Trump's agenda
Following a meeting between Trump and congressional Republicans on Wednesday, Rep. Troy Nehls of Texas said he was ready to pass "every single word" of the president-elect's second-term agenda.
- Michael Luciano @ Mediaite: Tommy Tuberville Claims Senators Have No Business Voting Against Nominees: ‘It’s Not Us to Determine That’
Move over, “Advice and Consent of the Senate,” Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) said senators have no business scrutinizing the appointments of President-elect Donald Trump.
- David Gilbert @ Wired: Donald Trump’s New ‘Border Czar’ Defended Child Separation at Festival Held by Gun-Worshipping Sect
Tom Homan, the man president-elect Donald Trump has selected to serve as “border czar,” defended his family separation policy at an extremist festival last month surrounded by QAnon promoters, election conspiracists, and church leaders wearing crowns of bullets.
