Pete Hegseth has precisely zero qualifications to run the DOD. He has embarrassed Trump with his antics on multiple occasions. But Trump shows no inclination to fire him. Why?
Because Hegseth’s real job, in Trump’s eyes, is to turn the American military into a right-wing militia for use against Trump’s personal adversaries, domestic as well as foreign. Whatever his other failures, Hegseth appears to be completely committed to that task. To Trump, everything else is just noise.