Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s embattled pick to lead the Pentagon, attempted to shore up support for his nomination on Wednesday as allegations about his treatment of women and drinking habits continue to raise concern in the Senate.
Speaking to reporters in between meetings on Capitol Hill, Hegseth vowed not to withdraw his name from consideration and said that Trump is still supporting his nomination.
“I spoke to the president this morning. He supports me fully. We’re not going anywhere,” Hegseth said leaving a meeting with incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD).
Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, who was also at the Capitol visiting with senators, urged his former colleagues to hold a “fair hearing” for Hegseth.
“I think Pete Hegseth deserves a fair hearing by the Senate, not a sham hearing from the American media,” Vance told the Washington Examiner.
Hegseth already had been facing accusations of sexual assault stemming from a 2017 incident that he said was consensual. However, in the last 72 hours, fresh allegations came to light involving alcohol abuse, as well as an email from his mother in which she said her son “belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around.”
Penelope Hegseth acknowledged sending the email to her son during his 2018 divorce in an interview on Fox News but said it was at a time of “deep emotion” and that she sent an apology email two hours later.
“He’s redeemed, forgiven, changed. I think we all are after seven years,” she said in the interview.
Doubts about whether Hegseth could have the necessary support to be confirmed grew more apparent following reports that Trump has begun floating backup nominees such as Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL).
“It’s not 100% clear to me who he wants as his secretary of defense right now,” said Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO), speaking to reporters on Wednesday.
In an interview with Megyn Kelly on SiriusXM radio, Hegseth dismissed the allegations against him as lies created by enemies of Trump, comparing it to accusations against Justice Brett Kavanaugh during his Supreme Court confirmation hearings.
“It is the classic art of the smear,” Hegseth said. “Take whatever tiny kernels of truth — and there are tiny, tiny ones in there — and blow them up into a masquerade of a narrative about somebody that I am definitely not.”
He made a similar case in an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday, writing that “I look forward to an honest confirmation hearing with our distinguished senators — not a show trial in the press.”
Thune refused to predict whether Hegseth’s nomination will make it through the Senate, but said “he articulates a good vision, a strong vision for the Department of Defense.”
“He’s obviously an experienced veteran, combat veteran, so he brings a lot of experience about what the warfighters’ needs are and how to keep America ready for the potential battles of the future,” Thune said.
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS), the incoming chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Hegseth told him in a Wednesday morning meeting that he won’t drink if he’s confirmed.
“I think that’s probably a good idea,” Wicker said, telling the Washington Examiner that he thought Hegseth should not withdraw his nomination.
While many Republican senators won’t openly admit Hegseth’s nomination is in a precarious place, most agree that Hegseth has explaining to do.
“I would like to hear from him about many of the allegations that you all have been reporting. So, yeah, I have a lot of questions,” said Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), a critical swing vote.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), another centrist senator, said she plans on meeting with Hegseth “probably next week.”
“I have a lot of questions both in defense policy and elsewhere,” Collins told reporters.
Several GOP senators have called the allegations against Hegseth “serious” but have also emphasized he deserves a chance to prove himself.
“The allegations are very, very serious. They can’t be trivialized,” said Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND). “I just want to know if he’s going to be redeemed and if going forward he’s going to be better.”
“I think the mood of the conference is they are pretty serious, serious about it and serious about how these things affect his ability to do the job, the ability of the troops to look up to him,” Cramer added, while also stressing he believes Hegseth at the helm of the Pentagon would be a “breath of fresh air.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) denied accusations from allies within Trump’s orbit that he is working alongside Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) to sink Hegseth’s nomination. Ernst is thought to be among the possible replacements for Hegseth should his nomination fall through.
“People say a lot of things. I don’t know what they are talking about. I like Pete, I’ve known him a long time. You know the allegations he’s gonna have to address,” Graham told reporters.
Hegseth also denied that he was going to meet with Trump on Thursday, as was reported earlier in the day.
A major test for Hegseth’s nomination came on Wednesday when he met with Ernst, a combat veteran who has been vocal about being sexually assaulted herself. She is also an advocate of preventing military sexual assault and has sponsored bipartisan legislation to hold perpetrators accountable. The Iowa Republican did not tip her hand as to how she’d vote following her meeting.
“It was a very frank and thorough conversation,” she said, while also declining to answer questions about her name being floated to replace Hegseth.
Sen. Mike Braun (R-IN), who is leaving at the end of the year to become the governor of Indiana, admitted that it would be difficult for Hegseth to address the looming problem of sexual assault in the military when he’s faced similar allegations himself.
“That would be difficult, maybe, kind of trying to get through something like that when that’s the main thing that’s coming at you,” Braun said.
Some of Trump’s allies on Capitol Hill privately acknowledged they feared Trump’s discussions with DeSantis had given Republicans more flexibility to criticize and question Hegseth’s viability. Senate Republicans initially signaled that Hegseth had a path to confirmation, downplaying the reports of sexual assault.
The situation appears to have changed following the latest reporting, with senators offering a more measured assessment of his nomination.
“I don’t like to give up on stuff, but sometimes when you’re climbing a mountain so steep you’re going to probably slide back. In this case, it looks like Pete’s going to persist, but you never know when something does go a different direction,” Braun said.
Trump can only afford three defections within the Senate Republican conference to get his picks confirmed, as the GOP will hold a 53-seat majority come January. One of Trump’s picks, former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), who was nominated to become attorney general, withdrew from consideration after Senate Republicans expressed concerns. Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister was also nominated to serve as head of the Drug Enforcement Administration but withdrew from consideration earlier this week.
Senate Democrats are taking a victory lap, with some already considering Hegseth’s nomination to be “doomed.”
“I would be very surprised if we are still talking about Pete Hegseth next Monday, even by the end of the week,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT).
“I’ve talked to five to 10 Republicans who have said to me they are just waiting for the right moment to say ‘no’ to Pete Hegseth,” he added.
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Others, such as Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ), said he’d be more inclined to support DeSantis to become head of the Department of Defense, if he should be nominated to replace Hegseth.
“He’s a governor of one of our biggest states, he served in Congress, he served in the military, he has what you would look at on paper as the requisite kind of experience you’d want in a secretary of defense,” Kelly said.
