Hegseth has said this tattoo, which has been associated with extremist groups, prevented him from serving as a member of the National Guard at President Joe Biden's inauguration.

Pete Hegseth defended his chest tattoo as a standard Christian symbol, not an extremist symbol. “I was identified as an extremist by my own unit for a Christian tattoo,” he said. The tattoo in question was “Deus Vult,

But did this happen at the Pete Hegseth hearings in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee this week? If you thought those kinds of questions would dominate the hearings, you must be living under the illusion that we live in a serious country.

CNN's political commentators Scott Jennings and Karen Finney join CNN's Dana Bash to give their takeaways of Pete Hegseth's Senate confirmation hearing. DANA BASH: Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump's pick to run the Department of Defense,

Lt. Col. Jim Mattis fought in the Gulf War — he later retired as a four-star general and was Trump’s first defense secretary. And Trump’s final acting Pentagon chief, Chris Miller, served multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan as an Army special forces officer. He later retired as a colonel.

Pete Hegseth has several tattoos on his bodies. While some are dedicated to his service in the military, others are related to his faith.

Senators, especially Democratic members, grilled Hegseth over his record, his tattoos, and his views on women in the military.

Defense secretary nominee will publicly face senators for the first time after weeks of privately pushing back on criticism

Critics of Trump's defense secretary nominee say the symbol has been adopted by extremist groups, including white supremacists.

Hegseth says he will be a “change agent” and a “warrior” as Republicans demand new and strong leadership at the Pentagon.

FOX Business host Larry Kudlow gives his take on Pete Hegseth's confirmation hearing for secretary of defense on 'Kudlow.'

The Democrats’ refusal to question Hegseth over his fascist politics underscores that their priority is not the defense of democratic rights against a military-backed Trump dictatorship but the continuation of the war against Russia in Ukraine and the preparation of new wars against Iran in the Middle East and against China.