Dane Hughes serves as Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth. Hughes first joined the Department of Defense in October 2017 under the Trump-Pence Administration and served as the Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Asian and Pacific Security Affairs. In October 2018, he transitioned to the role of Policy Chief for the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs, a position he held until 2019 when he last served as Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Defense. Before joining the Trump-Vance Administration, he was a professional staff member for the U.S. House of Representatives Armed Services Committee, where he covered Readiness, Intelligence and Special Operations Policy for the Committee. Prior to serving on the committee, Hughes was the Director of Strategy for Research Innovations Inc., Vice President for Government Affairs at Deutsche Bank, USA, and Vice President at Marsh & McLennan. He also served in the United States Army as an Infantry and Psychological Operations Officer from March 2006 to October 2014. During his Army career, he deployed in support of three combat tours to Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, where he received the Bronze Star, Army Commendation Medal with Valor (2 Awards), the Purple Heart, and Combat Infantry Badge.

Hughes received a Master's degree in Professional Studies and Applied Intelligence from Georgetown University and, a Bachelor's degree in Political Science from Texas Lutheran University.