But he defended the Gabbard pick on the basis that "skepticism" can be healthy in a DNI, and said he would give Trump "the benefit of the doubt" on the Hegseth nomination. praising the Fox News host as "well-educated, obviously intelligent":

SARA SIDNER: Tulsi Gabbard for the job of director of National Intelligence, meaning she oversees all of the intelligence agencies, I think 18 of them.

She has spread Russian propaganda. She has challenged the intelligence on whether President Assad used chemical weapons, which the intelligence said he had certainly done. And now she's in this position to potentially head the high intelligence agency over all intelligence agencies. What does this what does this mean? To you?

SEC. JEH JOHNSON: Well, I'm going to surprise you a little bit. I don't think that it is an absolute prerequisite that the the director of national intelligence be someone of the intelligence community.

I also believe that on occasion, it's a good thing to be skeptical of the intelligence that we're provided. Those of us who are in a position of making serious decisions, policymakers.

I have received intelligence that I've been skeptical of, and I've asked the hard questions. I've asked to speak to the briefers directly who wrote the report.

So being skeptical of what the intelligence community produces can be a good thing. And I'm thinking of the intelligence leading up to the Iraq war, for example.

But again, I believe that the Senate has a constitutional obligation to advise and consent on this nomination and scrutinize it carefully.

SARA SIDNER: Let me ask you about another controversial pick, a Fox anchor, Pete Hegseth. He did serve in the Army National Guard, but now he is up for secretary of defense. And, you know, he said a few things.

He has lobbied for people who are accused of war crimes in Afghanistan. He recently said that women do not believe belong in combat roles. But you have said that you'd give him the benefit of the doubt. Why?

SEC. JEH JOHNSON: I'll give him the benefit of the doubt. On, on, on. On at least the nomination at this point.

Because here's somebody who was well-educated, obviously intelligent, was in financial services, was in the Wall Street community for a while, could have made a lot of money and chose to leave that put on the uniform of our country and see combat.

So I give him the benefit of the doubt for that reason. Being with all due respect, being a cable news host does not necessarily qualify you to be secretary of defense.

SARA SIDNER: It certainly does not.

SEC. JEH JOHNSON: And so, again, this is a nomination where the Senate has a duty to scrutinize the things that he has said, the positions he has taken, the positions he has taken with respect to those who have been found responsible for war crimes.

You know, one of the reasons our U.S. military, and I worked alongside the U.S. military at the Pentagon for years, one of the reasons it is the greatest and strongest military on earth is not just because of our raw power, but because of the military's dedication to the rule of law, dedication to adhering to the rules.