Donald Trump’s pick for defence secretary grilled by Senate committee about his personal life and allegations of sexual assault
Donald Trump’s pick to be secretary of defence dodged the bombs thrown at him by Democrats during a fiery Senate confirmation hearing.
Pete Hegseth showed why Trump chose him with a defiant performance that would have looked at home on Fox News, where he used to be a host.
Hegseth, a National Guard veteran, batted off questions about his personal life, allegations of sexual assault and his support for pardons for war criminals.
By the end of the hearing, Democrats had hoped that Hegseth, 44, would have looked like he had been waterboarded, a torture technique he has mused should be brought back by the US military.
But instead – aside from the public chastening – he seemed likely to be confirmed in a sign how powerful Trump has become.
It was a major blow to Democrats and raises questions over whether they will be able to stop any of Trump’s other controversial cabinet nominations, including vaccine denier Robert F Kennedy Jr.
Hegseth had faced allegations of financial mismanagement at the veterans’ nonprofit he ran, sexual assault, multiple affairs, drinking on the job, lack of experience at an executive level and comments that women shouldn’t serve in the military.
Yet as the hearing in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee began, the President-elect said that Hegseth had his “complete and total support” and said to him: “Good luck today, Pete!”
It was the most important thing anyone said all day.
The landmines came at Hegseth even before he finished his opening statement with a protester calling him a “misogynist” before being bundled out by security.
As Hegseth tried to claim he would bring back the “warrior culture” to the Pentagon, two more protesters were carried out of the room as they tried to shout him down.
In his remarks, Hegseth claimed that he would focus the three million US service personnel he would be in charge of on “lethality and meritocracy”.
Addressing the elephant in the room, Hegseth said: “It is true that I don’t have a similar biography to defence secretaries of the last 30 years. But, as President Trump also told me, we’ve repeatedly placed people atop the Pentagon with supposedly ‘the right credentials’ and where has it gotten us?”
In response to a question from a Republican Senator, Hegseth blamed a “coordinated smear campaign” from the liberal media for trying to take him down.
He said that liberals saw him as a “threat” because he was a “change agent”.
“I’m not a perfect person”, Hegseth said, adding that he had been “saved by the grace of God and Jennifer”, referring to his third wife, former Fox producer Jennifer Rauchet, who sat a few rows behind him.
Under questioning from Democrats, Hegseth took a page from the Trump playbook and denied and attacked his interrogators.
Jack Reed, a Rhode Island Senator who is the Democrats’ ranking member on the committee, asked Hegseth about emails that had been sent in recent months to liberal members of the military calling them “disloyal” and “traitorous”.
Hegseth pivoted and shot back: “You mentioned accountability which is something we’ve not had for the last four years”.
Reed was left grumpily saying that Hegseth’s responses were “interesting” but failed to land a blow.
Jeanne Shaheen, a New Hampshire Democrat, mocked Hegseth for his “11th hour conversion” to women serving in the military.
She asked him about comments last November in which Hegseth said he was “straight up saying we should not have women in combat roles, it hasn’t made us more effective”.
Yet after being nominated for defence secretary Hegseth reversed his position, saying that women in our military “have and continue to make amazing contributions across all aspects of our battlefield”.
New York Democrat Senator Kirsten Gillibrand gave Hegseth a dressing down that sounded like a court martial.
Raising her voice, she said Hegseth’s remarks about women were “hurtful” and “harmful to good order and discipline” in the military.
“You will have to change how you see women if you’re to do this job well and I don’t know if you’re capable of that,” Senator Gillibrand said.
Hegseth sat impassively, jutting out his square jaw as she continued her tongue-lashing.
When he was finally given the chance to speak, Hegseth said: “I have never disparaged women serving in the military. My critiques have been instances where I’ve seen standards lowered”.
But Senator Gillibrand wasn’t done and tore into Hegseth again for saying in the past that “we need moms but not in the military”.
“What’s wrong with being a mom by the way?” she said. “Once you have babies you’re no longer able to be lethal?”
Mazie Hirono, a Democrat from Hawaii, asked Hegseth if he would obey an order from Trump to shoot protesters in the legs as the President-elect did during the 2020 incident in Lafayette Square in Washington – Mark Esper, the defence secretary at the time, refused.
Hegseth said that he was in the Washington DC National Guard unit on duty that day, to which Hirono replied: “That sounds to me you will comply, you will shoot protesters in the legs”.
Hirono also asked if Hegseth would use military force to take over Greenland or the Panama Canal as Trump has suggested he might.
Hegseth dodged again and said that “President Trump received 77 million votes to be the lawful commander in chief”.
Hirono shot back: “You are no longer on Fox and Friends, Mr Hegseth”, prompting him to laugh.
It fell to Tim Kaine, the Virginia Democrat and former Vice Presidential running mate for Hillary Clinton, to get into the real dirt, including an allegation of sexual assault from 2017 which led to a financial settlement for the woman.
Kaine asked if Hegseth fathered a child with Rauchet while still married to his second wife. Hegseth responded by saying he was “completely cleared” of the sexual assault claims.
Kaine said he was “shocked” at the response and asked how he could “so casually cheat” on his wife.
When Kaine asked if Hegseth “took an oath” to be faithful during his three weddings just like he would to become Secretary of Defence, Hegseth said he had “failed in things” during his life.
Kaine asked: “Are there any other important facts you chose not to reveal?”
Hegseth said: “I sit here before you, an open book”.
Kaine replied: “With multiple non-disclosure agreements and confidentiality agreements tying the hands of people who would like to speak to us”.
Republicans seemed to be enjoying themselves and Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville told the hearing it was “going well”.
It was indeed.