When Elisa Smithers was deployed to Iraq in 2005, there was a ban on women serving in ground combat operations. She now fears the progress made for women in combat since then will be reversed after President-elect Donald Trump announced Pete Hegseth this week as his pick for secretary of defense – a Fox News host and Army veteran who has criticized efforts to allow women into combat roles.

President-elect Donald Trump stunned political observers Tuesday night by nominating Fox News personality Pete Hegseth for secretary of defense.

Hegseth has laid down markers on his agenda for running the Pentagon: firing generals who promote “woke” military policies, eliminating combat roles for women and loosening reins on troops conduct in combat.

In picking Fox News Channel host Pete Hegseth to lead the Department of Defense, President-elect Donald Trump has selected a military veteran and popular conservative media personality with a large fo

Trump touted Hegseth’s book in his announcement, adding that he’s “tough, smart and a true believer in America First.”

The 44-year old former FOX host is one of Trump's most surprising picks as he fills out his cabinet ahead of the Jan. 20 inauguration.

It could also set up a collision course between Hegseth and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Air Force General C.Q. Brown, a former fighter pilot with command experience

Who is Pete Hegseth, the Fox News host and military veteran President-elect Donald Trump nominated as Defense secretary? His book offers clues.

Senators on Wednesday offered differing opinions on the possibility of confirming President-elect Donald Trump’s pick Pete Hegseth to lead the Defense Department, as some embraced the selection and others questioned his lack of experience.