Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s controversial pick for US secretary of defense, appeared at a Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday, as the military veteran and Fox News host weathers intense scrutiny over allegations of sexual assault, excessive alcohol use and financial mismanagement.
Hegseth can only afford to lose the votes of three Senate Republicans, assuming every Democratic senator opposes his nomination, and several Republican members have voiced concerns about Hegseth’s personal history and his views on women in the military.
The Republican chair of the Senate armed services committee, Roger Wicker, acknowledged the criticism of Hegseth in his opening remarks at the hearing.
“Mr Hegseth has admitted to falling short, as we all do from time to time,” Wicker said. “It is noteworthy that the vast majority of the accusations leveled at Mr Hegseth have come from anonymous sources. Contrast these anonymous accusations with the many public letters of support and commendation.”
In 2017, Hegseth was accused of sexually assaulting a woman who said he took her cellphone and blocked the door of a hotel room to prevent her from leaving, according to a police report. Hegseth has denied the accusation, although his lawyer acknowledged that the woman was paid a settlement.
An explosive report from the New Yorker also outlined claims that Hegseth frequently became so intoxicated at work events as to require colleagues’ assistance in getting home. One whistleblower further accused Hegseth of using official funds for the non-profit that he previously led, Concerned Veterans for America, as a “personal expense account”.
Hegseth has made more problems for himself by suggesting that women should not serve in combat roles and attacking the inclusion of gay troops in the military as part of a “Marxist agenda”, although he has somewhat backtracked on those comments in recent weeks.
Hegseth pushed back against the criticism in a Wall Street Journal op-ed published last month, writing: “It’s a textbook manufactured media takedown. They provide no evidence, no names, and they ignore the legions of people who speak on my behalf. They need to create a bogeyman, because they believe I threaten their institutional insanity.”
Despite the numerous controversies sparked by Hegseth’s nomination, Trump’s Republican allies in the Senate have voiced confidence about his chances of confirmation. Republican John Thune, the Senate majority leader, has reportedly told Trump that Hegseth will have the votes to be confirmed.
“The meetings have gone very well. Things are heading in the right direction,” John Barrasso, the Senate majority whip, told CBS News on Sunday. “People will listen and make their own decision.”
But Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate armed services committee, indicated that his meeting with Hegseth last week failed to convince him of the nominee’s qualifications to lead the country’s largest government agency.
“Mr Hegseth, I do not believe that you are qualified to meet the overwhelming demands of this job,” Reed said in his opening remarks at the hearing. “Indeed, the totality of your own writings and alleged conduct would disqualify any service member from holding any leadership position in the military, much less being confirmed as the secretary of defense.”
Before the hearing, Elizabeth Warren, a Democratic member of the Senate armed services committee, sent Hegseth a 33-page letter with 72 questions about his personal history and views on the military, probably foreshadowing a contentious hearing on Tuesday.
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“I am deeply concerned by the many ways in which your past behavior and rhetoric indicates that you are unfit to lead the Department of Defense,” Warren wrote. “Your confirmation as secretary of defense would be detrimental to our national security and disrespect a diverse array of servicemembers who are willing to sacrifice for our country.”
More broadly, Democrats have expressed outrage over Republicans’ handling of confirmation hearings, accusing them of trying to “rush” proceedings to clear the way for Trump’s cabinet nominees.
“The American people have a right to know if President-elect Trump’s cabinet nominees are going to fight for them,” Chuck Schumer, the Senate minority leader, said in a floor speech last week. “It’s hard not to wonder: what are the Republicans trying to hide about these nominees from the American people?”
Several of Trump’s cabinet nominees will appear at Senate confirmation hearings in the coming days, before the president-elect takes the oath of office on Monday.
