Awkward exchanges about the defense secretary hopeful’s past were plentiful as Democrats went after the first embattled Trump pick to face a confirmation hearing.

President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, underwent his Senate confirmation hearings on Tuesday, where senators scrutinized his fitness for the role due to his past as a combat veteran and TV host.

Pete Hegseth vowed to foster a "warrior culture" at the Pentagon and be a "change agent." He did not address the allegations of sexual assault and excessive drinking, focusing instead on his combat experience.

Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for defense secretary, said in his Senate confirmation hearing that the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks in Israel were the direct result of President Biden’s 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Democrats said Hegseth’s lack of experience, his past comments about women and Black troops and allegations of excessive drinking, and sexual misconduct, make him unfit to serve. Republicans described him as "unconventional" but an “excellent choice.

The 10-nation bloc, known as ASEAN, has been useful for the United States in countering China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific. Many member nations have territorial disputes with China, which has become increasingly assertive in pressing those claims.