3 weeks ago
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House Armed Services Committee Chair Mike Rogers is under consideration to be President-elect Donald Trump's defense secretary, according to three people familiar with the deliberations.
Rogers, a conservative Alabama Republican and among the most strident of defense hawks in the House, would be a dark horse in a field of potential Trump Pentagon picks.
Rogers is a relatively low key lawmaker despite his seniority. And though he’s not as personally close to the former president as other contenders for the Pentagon or other top national security jobs, Rogers is nonetheless a strong political ally and Trump defender. And they align on a number of national security issues.
Trump’s transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for Rogers declined to comment.
Rogers joins a shortlist of potential nominees:
- Rep. Mike Waltz, a former Green Beret long close to Trump who serves on the House Armed Services, Foreign Affairs and Intelligence committees.
- Mike Pompeo, Trump’s former Secretary of State and CIA director, has also been mentioned as a contender.
- Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), an Army veteran and vocal defense hawk, was also thought to be in the mix for the top Pentagon job, but recently took his name out of consideration for an administration post.
Rogers has chaired Armed Services since Republicans took over the House in 2023. There, he’s pushed for significant increases in defense spending to take on China and Russia, ramp up defense production and modernize the U.S. nuclear arsenal. He’s also pushed for legislation to significantly raise junior enlisted troops’ pay and benefits.
Rogers, though, has also been a strong advocate of U.S. assistance for Ukraine as GOP opposition to new funding for the fight grew in the House. As Armed Services chair, Rogers held oversight hearings on Ukraine aid to bolster support and demonstrate that U.S. assistance is being properly employed. Just days before the election, Rogers led a bipartisan congressional delegation to Kyiv.
Trump, on the other hand, has opposed new funding for Ukraine, instead promising to negotiate an end to the war with Russia. But despite his advocacy for aid, Rogers argued shortly after taking the Armed Services gavel in 2023 that Ukraine and Russia need to be convinced to go to the bargaining table to end the war.
His advocacy for larger defense budgets and Ukraine-related spending have run afoul of hard right GOP factions in the House loyal to Trump. But Rogers has also championed many conservative-favored issues — most notably rolling back Biden-era personnel policies on troops’ access to abortion, diversity in the ranks and Pentagon climate programs.
Trump and Rogers align most closely on a policy issue near and dear to both of them: space. Rogers advocated for a new military service dedicated to space and defending U.S. satellites, which became the Space Force. Trump, who pushed lawmakers hard to establish the Space Force, has called creating the first new military branch since the 1940s one of his top achievements. Rogers and former Rep. Jim Cooper ushered the reorganization through Congress.
Despite his strong conservative views, Rogers has forged working relationships with Democrats in the House and Senate, working on annual defense legislation that could help him get through a possible confirmation process.
But Republicans' success — or lack thereof — at the polls could get in the way.
GOP leaders say they're on track to keep their majority in the House, but they're likely to have a margin of just a handful of seats. That means Trump won't be able to tap many Republican lawmakers for his administration, at least not initially, without risking his legislative agenda.
