WASHINGTON – President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Defense Department, Pete Hegsett, is in jeopardy as Senate Republicans grow increasingly concerned. claimof to drink and gives information about it treatment of women.
Three Republican sources with direct knowledge of his nomination process said six Senate Republicans, and possibly more, are uncomfortable supporting Hexeth’s bid to lead the Pentagon as new revelations about his background come to light. Given the Republicans’ slim Senate majority in the next Congress, former Fox News host Hegseth could only lose three GOP votes, assuming all Democrats vote against him.
Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, who sits on the Armed Services Committee, would not commit to endorsing Hegseth’s nomination and said she plans to discuss reports of allegations of alcohol abuse, mistreatment of women and financial mismanagement.
“We’re going to have a really candid and thorough conversation,” Ernst said.
Hegseth was a veteran of the Army National Guard accused of sexually assaulting a woman in California in 2017, according to a police report It was made public after Trump announced that he would nominate him for the post of defense secretary. Hegseth, who has not been charged, denied the woman’s claims and said the meeting was consensual even though he paid. an undisclosed amount as part of the settlement with him.
Separately, NBC News reported on Tuesday According to 10 current and former Fox employees, Hegsett’s drinking was a concern for his colleagues at Fox News. Two of them said Hegseth smelled of alcohol more than a dozen times before he went on air. Hegseth did not respond to requests for comment on the allegations Tuesday evening at the Capitol.
The initial allegations, which emerged last month, did not jeopardize Hegseth’s planned candidacy. After their first meetings on Capitol Hill last month, Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chairman of the Armed Services Committee, said he expected Hegsett’s confirmation. On Tuesday, after several other reports about Hegseth’s past, but before NBC News reported on Fox News’ drinking allegations, Wicker sounded more cautious.
“I think some members have questions and we’ll be looking for answers,” Wicker said.
The New Yorker On Sunday, Hegseth published a story about a previously undisclosed 2015 whistleblower report from the veterans organization where he worked, alleging he was repeatedly drunk on the job. NBC News has not seen the report, which was shared with the nonprofit group’s leadership, and Hegseth’s attorney did not respond to a request for comment about the article Monday. In a lawyer’s statement to The New Yorker, an unidentified adviser to Hegseth called the allegations “outrageous” and said they came from a “petty and jealous disgruntled former colleague.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham, RSC, said he is still open to supporting Hegseth and believes he deserves a fair hearing, but said Tuesday that Hegseth should explain media reports about his past behavior in a way that would give senators confidence in the vote. confirm it.
“There is a process where we can ask him questions. The articles I read, yes, some of them are relevant,” Graham said. “I don’t know if that’s true or not, but he’s going to go through the process. They will ask him about it. We will see what will happen.”
Hegseth met with many senators on Capitol Hill on Tuesday. Trump’s transition team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Another Trump pick to fill his cabinet dropped out of contention last month Amid opposition from Senate Republicans. Former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., was Trump’s pick for attorney general, but at least five Senate Republicans were poised to vote against him, five people with direct knowledge of the allegations told NBC News at the time. with a minor (Getz denied this and was not charged).
There are several Republican senators continued to reduce claimsThey said they support Trump’s authority to choose his own cabinet.
Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., called the allegations a “side issue” Monday, saying Hegseth has “earned a great deal of credibility.”
“Are soldiers sometimes wild children? Yes, it can happen,” Lummis said when asked if the allegations apply to him. Pete Hegseth is the answer to that concern, with our ability to project force around the world with our own military might.”
Asked to respond to allegations of misogyny and alcohol abuse, Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, responded Tuesday: “That would not be new in Washington.”