Hegseth sets about executing Trump’s orders to ‘reorient’ Pentagon radically: ‘This is a shift’

Published January 28, 2025 7:30am ET



THIS IS NOT THE WAY BUSINESS HAS BEEN DONE IN THE PAST’: Watching Pete Hegseth’s arrival for his first full day at the Pentagon, you had to wonder what was going through the mind of Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Charles Q. Brown, whose face remained expressionless and eyes fixed unblinkingly on the former Army National Guard major as he stood on the River Entrance steps expressing his unabashed enthusiasm for President Donald Trump’s orders to change the culture of priorities of the U.S. military.

“It’s an honor to salute smartly, as I did as a junior officer and now as the secretary of defense, to ensure these orders are complied with rapidly and quickly,” Hegseth told reporters, “We are reorienting. This is a shift. This is not the way business has been done in the past.”

Already a print subscriber? Click here to login/register your account

Trusted reporting.Unlimited access.

Subscribe for full access to Washington Examiner coverage, expert political analysis, and subscriber-only journalism.

Get Unlimited Access

Already a member? Log in

Cancel anytime.