US Defence Secretary and former Fox News host Pete Hegseth reportedly ordered a make-up studio to be installed in the Pentagon so he can freshen up for television appearances.
The vanity project was initially planned to cost taxpayers US$40,000 before being scaled back, according to CBS News.
Hegseth’s powder area is reportedly located inside a green room next to the Pentagon’s press briefing room. CBS sources said a table with chairs was removed to make room for a new chair and large, lighted make-up mirror.
The 44-year-old Pentagon chief recently boasted he had purged the Department of Defence of “illegals, trans and DEI” as he strives to promote “warfighting over wokeness” in the US military.
A defence official said Hegseth does his own make-up rather than hiring a professional. He announced plans to cut more than US$5 billion in defence spending earlier this month.
A Defence Department spokesperson explained to CBS News that “changes and upgrades to the Pentagon Briefing Room are nothing new and routinely happen during changes in an administration.”
