Rep. Cory Mills (R-FL) dismissed criticisms of Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump‘s selection for secretary of defense.

Mills’s fellow veteran’s selection came as a shock to many, as it would be Hegseth’s first senior position in the federal government, but the Republican congressman assured viewers of the Ingraham Angle that he was not worried about Hegseth.

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“It’s funny how everyone, all these pundits, who want to attack him, are the same people that never actually served,” Mills said. “Pete has led men in combat; he’s got a degree from both Princeton and Harvard, he’s a great orator, and wants to go after [diversity, equity, and inclusion] and [critical race theory], which is one of the primary reasons that we have 42,000 recruitment deficit. So, bottom line, he is an outsider. That’s exactly what we want. He is also a military officer. In my opinion, he is qualified for the job.”

Hegseth has a Bachelor of Arts in politics at Princeton University and a master’s degree in public policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. During his service, he earned two Bronze Stars and a Combat Infantryman Badge. He served tours in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

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According to Mills, Hegseth should make it a priority to reinstate the military members who were discharged over their refusal of the COVID-19 vaccine. Over 8,000 members were discharged under President Joe Biden for such reason.

While there are nearly 100 veterans serving in the House of Representatives, Hegseth will need to win over the Senate in order to be confirmed, where there are far fewer veterans. Already, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) has publicly denounced Hegseth for suggesting that women should not serve in combat positions, since she lost her legs in combat herself.