Pete Hegseth seems really confused about where Southeast Asia is

Pete HegsethPresident-elect Donald Trump’s choice for Secretary of Defense revealed an embarrassing ignorance of a major geopolitical organization under his Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday.

Hegseth, a former Fox News personality, took questions from Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) when she challenged him to share his knowledge of just one member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN.

“Can you mention the importance of at least one of the nations in ASEAN and what type of agreement we have with at least one of those nations?” she asked.

“I couldn’t tell you the exact amount of nations in it, but I know we have allies in South Korea and Japan and…with Australia,” Hegseth began to answer.

Duckworth cut him off to make a major correction.

“None of the three countries that you have mentioned are in ASEAN,” she said. “I suggest you do some homework before preparing for this type of negotiation.”

ASEAN members include Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Australia, one of the countries Hegseth mentioned, is not even on the Asian continent.

Hegseth, who faces allegations of sexual misconduct and excessive drinking and partieshas spent the last decade as a commentator for Fox News. In the early 2000s, he was employed as a infantry officer in the Army National Guard and deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq and Guantanamo Bay. Beyond that, he has no experience in defensive roles.

Duckworth wasn’t the only person to focus on Hegseth’s minimal qualifications on Tuesday. Late. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) told Hegseth he would support him if he were to audition for a minor rolesuch as a Pentagon spokesman. Late. Jack Reed (DR.I.), the ranking Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, was even tougher.

“Mr. Hegseth, I do not believe you are qualified to meet the overwhelming demands of this job.” Reed told him.

“A number of sources, including your own writings, implicate you in ignoring martial law, economic mismanagement, racist and sexist remarks about men and women in uniform, alcohol abuse, sexual assault, sexual harassment and other troubling issues,” he continued. . “I have reviewed many of these allegations and find them extremely alarming.”

Hegseth has denied all charges against him.

Related…