Question on ASEAN Stumped Hegseth at Senate Hearing. What Is It and Why Is It Important?
AP | 15 January 2025
Sen. Tammy Duckworth asked Trump's defense secretary pick to name at least one country in ASEAN. He couldn't.
Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to be Defense secretary, speaks before the Senate Armed Services Committee for his confirmation hearing, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
BANGKOK (AP) — Sen. Tammy Duckworth, grilling President-elect Donald Trump’s choice for defense secretary over whether he had the “breadth and depth of knowledge” needed to lead international negotiations, asked Pete Hegseth if could name one member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, describe what type of agreement the U.S. had with the countries and how many nations were in the bloc.
Hegseth responded at the heated Senate confirmation hearing that he couldn’t tell Duckworth the exact number of ASEAN nations, but that “I know we have allies in South Korea and Japan in AUKUS (a pact between Australia, the United Kingdom and the U.S.) with Australia.”
“None of those three countries are in ASEAN,” responded Duckworth, a Democrat from Illinois. “I suggest you do a little homework.”
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