Matthew Hooton: Pete Hegseth may be ignorant, but he's not always wrong

OPINION: New Zealand spends the least on defence as a share of GDP among Nato’s IP4.

giovedì 4 giugno 2026 New tab

95 words~1 min read

PremiumOpinionMatthew Hooton has more than 30 years’ experience in political and corporate strategy, including the National and Act parties.‌NZ Herald Morning Headlines | Sunday, May 31, 2026

Hegseth: NZ 'freeloading' off US military; large spike in child poverty; boost for early childhood education.

Video / NZ HeraldNo one should take seriously whatever Pete Hegseth says about anything. As United States Secretary of War, the former talk show host’s contribution has so far been to weaken his country’s national security and strengthen that of Iran and its clerical, secular and military leaderships.

His strategic incompetence based

Matthew Hooton: Pete Hegseth may be ignorant, but he's not always wrong

Matthew Hooton: Pete Hegseth may be ignorant, but he's not always wrong

Other newsrooms on this story

Related reading

'No more freeloading': Pete Hegseth slams NZ's defence spending

Pete Hegseth's 'freeloading' snipe: Should NZ be worried?

'Very much as we would expect': Penk responds to US 'freeloading' jibe

Pete Hegseth says New Zealand is ‘freeloading’ off US despite $1.5b Budget boost

New Zealand tells US it lacks billions ‘under the couch’ to boost defence

New Zealand rejects US ‘freeloader’ swipe over defence spending

Related reading

'No more freeloading': Pete Hegseth slams NZ's defence spending

Pete Hegseth's 'freeloading' snipe: Should NZ be worried?

'Very much as we would expect': Penk responds to US 'freeloading' jibe

Pete Hegseth says New Zealand is ‘freeloading’ off US despite $1.5b Budget boost

New Zealand tells US it lacks billions ‘under the couch’ to boost defence

New Zealand rejects US ‘freeloader’ swipe over defence spending

Other newsrooms on this story