As President-elect Donald Trump reveals his picks for top government positions, some face criticism for their backgrounds. Other than Trump’s pick of Florida senator Matt Gaetz for Attorney General, no pick has been more controversial than his pick for defense secretary, Pete Hegseth. Hegseth, a former Army National Guard infantry officer, has served in multiple tours in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. He is also known for his books, including The Coddling of the American Mind, and appearing as a host of Fox News. His critics, however, have taken issue with his stance against women serving in combat roles.

Hegseth has been vocal in his opposition to women serving in combat since former president Barrack Obama lifted the ban on women in combat in 2016. “I don’t think it improves our war-fighting capabilities. This administration has been all about social engineering and social justice from the beginning,” he said at the time. In a previous interview with Ben Shapiro of The Daily Wire, Hegseth stated that he supported women in other roles, but not combat. “They could be medics or helicopter pilots or whatever. But they create all sorts of variables and complications that have nothing to do with being anti-women and everything to do with having the most effective military.” In a podcast on “The Shawn Ryan Show,” he continued to defend his position. “I’m straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles. It hasn’t made us more effective. It hasn’t made us more lethal [and] has made fighting more complicated,” he said. He has also stated that standards have had to be changed in order to allow women to qualify for combat roles. “[Women] will do the combat jobs of men knowing that we’ve changed the standards in putting them there. Which means you’ve changed the capability of that unit. If you say you haven’t, you’re a liar because everybody knows between bone density and lung capacity and muscle strength.”

Hegseth’s views have received pushback, particularly from women who have served or are serving. “We already have enough issues,” an anonymous US army Colonel told NBC News. “I could see how it could hurt a lot of potential on who serves and who stays serving, if policies like that change. It would be like taking back our ability to vote.” Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth, who lost both of her legs in 2004 while flying combat missions during Iraqi Freedom, has also been critical of the pick. “Where do you think I lost my legs? In a bar fight? I’m pretty sure I was in combat when that happened. It just shows how out of touch he is with the nature of modern warfare if he thinks that we can keep women behind some sort of imaginary line, which is not the way warfare is today,” she told CNN.

Hegseth has had his defenders. “There’s roles and missions for everyone involved in the military. But when it comes to physical endurance, there’s a difference between men and women. And let’s call it the way it is,” said Representative Ryan Zinke (R-Mont). Jessie Jane Duff of Veterans for Trump defended Hegseth as well, pointing at a study. “Pete Hegseth knows the reality. The Marines did 9-month study that showed women in ground combat is a lethal mistake. President Obama completely discarded the study.”