Senator Tim Kaine pressed Hegseth on the assault charges.
Senator Tim Kaine used his time during Pete Hegseth’s confirmation hearing to question the nominee about the assault allegations.
WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Pentagon, Pat Hegseth, took a significant step closer to Senate confirmation Thursday despite an 8-year-old rape allegation and concerns about alcoholism, domestic abuse and misconduct.
The Senate’s 51-49 vote officially starts a countdown clock to what is expected to be a final confirmation vote by Friday night for Hegseth, 44, to become the nation’s top civilian military official. Republican Sens. Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska joined all Senate Democrats against Hegseth, but they still fell short of the simple majority needed to block Trump’s nomination.
Higseth’s path to becoming defense secretary has been controversial from the start, and during her confirmation hearing last week, Democratic senators questioned her past comments about women in the military and accusations of gross misconduct.
The former Fox & Friends co-host brushed off questions over a 2017 rape complaint that did not lead to allegations of workplace misconduct and alcohol abuse, saying she was the victim of a coordinated smear campaign.
Thursday’s Senate vote came after Hegseth’s former sister-in-law sent a signed statement to the Senate Armed Services Committee alleging that he forced his ex-wife to take refuge in a closet. , insulted women, Muslims and Mexican-Americans and drank alcohol. Excessive, passing out and vomiting.
In one instance, Hegseth had to be escorted from a strip club in Minneapolis where he was lap dancing in uniform.
Hegseth’s attorney, Timothy Parlatore, categorically denied the allegations as false, noting that Hegseth’s ex-wife has said in court filings that there was no physical abuse in their marriage.
His ex-wife recently gave a new statement to the FBI about Hegseth’s drinking. CNN reported. on Thursday.
According to the report, Sens. Roger Wicker and Jack Reid, the committee’s Republican chairman and top Democrat, were briefed on the statement two days after Hegseth’s confirmation hearing before the committee.
Reed said The FBI report was “true and accurate,” he said, adding that “the FBI has not been required to give more than one briefing as designated by the Secretary of Defense during its time in the Senate.”
But Wicker called it “harsh and factually incorrect”. And said “Allegations that unfairly impinge on their character do not bear scrutiny.”
After the reports this week, Senate Democrats called on Hegseth to meet privately with each committee member before a final vote. “Voting to confirm this nomination would be irresponsible and contrary to our constitutional duty,” he said in a statement on Wednesday.
Minutes before voting against Hegseth on Thursday, Murkowski explained her reasoning in a post on X, saying, “After thorough review, I must conclude that I in good conscience support his nomination for Secretary of Defense. Can’t support the nomination.”
“While the allegations of sexual abuse and excessive drinking do nothing to assuage my concerns, Mr Hegseth’s admitted past behaviour, including infidelity on numerous occasions, demonstrates a lack of judgment which Disgusting for someone who should lead our armed forces,” Murkowski wrote.
Murkowski said Hegseth’s lack of experience and past opposition to women in combat also factored into her vote. Just off the Senate floor, Murkowski told reporters that she was “absolutely at peace” with her decision to vote no.
Hegseth says he is a change agent ready to shake up the military.
Hegseth is a combat veteran and former Fox News host who spent his years as a conservative media pundit criticizing the military for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in line with Trump’s attack on DEI programs in government.
At his confirmation hearing last week, Hegseth portrayed himself as a change agent who would overhaul a military crippled by “woke” policies and bureaucracy. He admitted that he managed a few hundred employees at most, far outnumbering the Pentagon’s 3 million soldiers and civilians and $850 billion budget.
Democrats on the committee rejected allegations of public intoxication against Hegseth, financial mismanagement of nonprofit veterans organizations he chaired, and allegations of alcohol-related sexual assault in 2017. Hegseth later paid the accuser to remain silent about the allegation, claiming that, although false, it would damage his standing as a Fox News host.
The attack was part of a pattern pointed to by the Democrats of Heggeist’s attitude towards women. A year after it happened, Hegseth’s mother, Penelope, wrote an email to Hegseth calling him an “abuser of women” and saying that she “has no respect for a man who despises , lies, cheats, sleeps around, and uses women for his power and ego.” The New York Times After Trump reportedly nominated Hegseth, his mother appeared on Fox News to retract her statements.
Republicans on the committee, many of whom echoed his criticisms of Pentagon leadership, agreed with Hegseth that the allegations were “anonymous smears” and that Hegseth, after his past infidelities and troubled drinking, was a changed man.
Sean Wicker said Hegseth’s past inexperience will help, not hinder, the job. “I think he has a lot of knowledge — and frankly, we need to shake things up at the Pentagon.”
But the committee’s Democrats were not satisfied, claiming that Hegsoth was seriously lacking in the ability to run the military.
“He spent a large part of the hearing talking about how he doesn’t want to lower the standards for other people to do their jobs, whether they’re women or minorities. He can work,” Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-IL. told USA TODAY.
Democrats also criticized Hegseth for her past statements opposing women serving in military combat roles. Less than a week before Trump nominated her for the post, Hegseth said in a podcast interview, “I’m saying straight up that we shouldn’t have women in combat roles,” only that To take the statement back for hearing. .
After a pleasant exchange with Hegseth at the hearing, Sen. Rep. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, a military veteran, said she would support her confirmation, ending speculation that she would be one of the few Republican holdouts.
In the interim before confirming the new secretary of defense, Trump tapped Robert Salesis, a retired Marine Corps officer, to take over the post.
Savannah Kochhar and Sideksha Kochi contributed to this report.
