Pete Hegseth Says US Military Bases Should Restore Names of Confederate Generals

Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of defense, has voiced strong opposition to removing the names of Confederate generals from US military bases, repeatedly saying the names should be changed back.

Hegseth, a National Guard veteran and longtime Fox News host, has described the renaming efforts as “a sham,” “garbage,” and “crap” in various media appearances between 2021 and 2024 reviewed by CNN. Hegseth said the moves eroded military tradition and were part of what he characterized as a politically motivated progressive agenda infiltrating American institutions.

Between 2022 and 2023, the names of nine US military bases previously dedicated to Confederate leaders were changed, the result of the National Defense Authorization Act passed at the end of the first Trump administration. Trump initially vetoed the bill, partly in protest over the renaming provision, but Congress overwhelmingly overrode the veto to pass the bill in January 2021 .

As secretary of defense, Hegseth could advocate for reverting base names to their former Confederate names, but the changes would require congressional approval.

Hegseth, whose Senate confirmation hearings begin January 14, has criticized other cultural shifts in the military, including allowing women to serve in combat roles and gay service members to serve openly .

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During his 2024 book tour promoting “The War on Warriors,” Hegseth frequently criticized the decision to rename military bases, calling it an erasure of legacy and tradition.

“We should change it back by the way,” he said emphatically while promoting his book when discussing North Carolina’s Fort Liberty – previously Fort Bragg – on a podcast. “We should change it back. We should change it back. We should change it back, because legacy matters. My uncle served at Bragg. I served at Bragg. It breaks a generational link.”

Fort Bragg, one of the largest Army bases in the US, was named for Braxton Bragg, a general in the Confederacy and slave owner who lost nearly every battle he was involved in during the Civil War. A naming commission set-up by Congress to study renaming bases noted Bragg is “considered one of the worst generals of the Civil War,” and was “widely disliked in the pre-Civil War U.S. Army and within the Confederate Army by peers and subordinates alike.”

The base, originally Camp Bragg, opened during World War I and was named by locals for Bragg, the only Civil War general from North Carolina.

The base was renamed Fort Liberty in 2023.

Trump has been adamant in his opposition to renaming bases honoring Confederate leaders.

“I have been clear in my opposition to politically motivated attempts like this to wash away history and to dishonor the immense progress our country has fought for in realizing our founding principles,” Trump said at the time of the legislation.

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