Pete Hegseth cleared a procedural hurdle Thursday to advance his confirmation to lead the Defense Department for a final Senate vote, setting up a high-stakes showdown.
A motion to call for adjournment or start hearing by 3:00 p.m. passed 51-49. Republican Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, voted against Hegseth’s confirmation, Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., voted in favor.
Hegseth’s nomination hit another hurdle this week when reports emerged that his former sister-in-law claimed Hegseth had abused his second wife.
Two sources told CNN that Hegseth’s ex-wife, Samantha Hegseth, gave a statement to the FBI about Hegseth’s alleged alcohol consumption. Media outlets said one of the sources said Samantha Hegseth told the FBI, “He drinks more often than he doesn’t.”
On Tuesday, Fox News obtained an affidavit from Hegseth’s ex-sister-in-law, Danielle Hegseth, who said he had a problem with alcohol abuse and that his ex-wife, Samantha, made him fear for his safety at times. Danielle Hegseth was previously married to Pete Hegseth’s brother and has no relation to Samantha.
But Danielle Hegseth added that she herself never witnessed any abuse, physical or sexual, by Pete against Samantha.
Samantha Hegseth also denied any physical abuse in a statement to NBC News.
Senate Armed Services Chairman Roger Wicker he said in a statement Wednesday night that the reports “regarding the classified briefing on the background of the FBI investigation of Pete Hegseth that I received last week are grossly and factually incorrect” and that he stands by Hegseth’s nomination.
Pete Hegseth has cleared a procedural hurdle to advance his confirmation to lead the Defense Department to a final Senate vote. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
“It is troubling that the sensitive, lengthy process using the leadership of the presidential staff vetting committee is being litigated in the press by anonymous sources with ulterior motives,” Wicker said, adding that the FBI had notified him three times about the Hegseth background check.
The new report follows a series of damaging reports on Hegseth’s character, including allegations of sexual assault, which he denies, and reports of his alleged drinking and financial mismanagement. Hegseth said he would abstain from alcohol if confirmed.
Hegseth is expected to face one of the toughest confirmation battles of any Trump administration nominee. His confirmation hearing he was tough on questions about personal character and questioned about his opposition to specific standards for women in combat and easy on questions about politics.
Earlier on Thursday, Minority Leader Sen Chuck SchumerDN.Y., called on Republicans to join him in opposing the former Fox News host and National Guard member.
“Hegseth is so grossly unqualified to be ranked so highly [as] … one of the worst candidates imaginable,” Schumer said.
Hegseth’s nomination hit another hurdle this week when reports emerged that his ex-sister-in-law publicly claimed he abused his second wife. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
“People’s lives depend on it – civilians and, of course, the men and women of the armed forces – and Pete Hegseth has proven not only incapable of leading a large organisation, he has often proven incapable of appearing or appearing in a way to do anything . He is so out of the mainstream and so unqualified for DOD that I hope we can get our Republican colleagues to join us this afternoon.”
Hegseth, who has been married three times, admitted he was a “serial cheater” before he became a Christian and married his now-wife Jenny.
Army 44-year-old National Guard veteran, who served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, is relatively young and inexperienced compared to defense ministers in the past, retiring as a major. But Republicans say they don’t want someone who rose to the top entrenched in the Pentagon establishment.
Hegseth has made it clear that he will work to combat “woke” programs at the Pentagon that promote diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). He originally said he opposed women in combat before later clarifying that he only opposed standards for women in combat that were different from men.
Pete Hegseth with his Afghan translator Saboor Sakhizad (Fox News)
“I’m honestly just saying we shouldn’t have women in combat roles,” Hegseth said on the “Shawn Ryan Show” podcast. “It didn’t make us more efficient, it didn’t make us more lethal, it made the fight more complicated.”
In addition, in 2019 he successfully lobbied Trump to pardon three members of the military convicted or accused of war crimes in Afghanistan and Iraq.
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Trump may have been looking ahead to spare himself the headache this role caused him during his first administration. Only Jim Mattis and Mark Esper lasted more than a year. Three others served in an acting capacity. Hegseth is more likely to go along with Trump’s goals for the department.
Fox News’ Stephen Sorace, Julia Johnson and Tyler Olson contributed to this report.
