Pete Hegseth

16 Stories

Graham: Hegseth to Free Accuser From NDA

SC senator says he's a tentative 'yes' on ex-Fox News host leading DOD, despite sex assault claim

(Newser) - Pete Hegseth's path to becoming secretary of defense has seen multiple obstacles, including a 2017 sexual assault allegation and an unflattering email from his own mother . On the latter, GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham says Hegseth is ready to make a big move—releasing his accuser in that case from...

Pete Hegseth's Chances Have Suddenly Improved
How Pete Hegseth's Chances
Have Suddenly Improved
the rundown

How Pete Hegseth's Chances Have Suddenly Improved

Skeptical GOP senator, Joni Ernst, signals support after fierce backlash

(Newser) - A week ago, it seemed that Pete Hegseth's chances of becoming the next defense secretary were doomed, with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis floated as a possible replacement . Things look much different now, however, after what Punchbowl News describes as a "vibe shift" on Capitol Hill in favor of...

Trump Says Support for Hegseth Is 'Strong and Deep'

'We've got his back,' Vance says

(Newser) - After days of relative silence on his nominee for defense secretary and rumors that he was eyeing replacements , President-elect Trump spoke out in support of Pete Hegseth Friday morning. Hegseth "is doing very well. His support is strong and deep, much more so than the Fake News would have...

Pete Hegseth Says He's 'Not Going Anywhere'

He vows to abstain from alcohol as defense secretary to woo hesitant senators

(Newser) - "We're not going anywhere," Pete Hegseth told reporters Wednesday as he tried to convince lawmakers to back his bid to become defense secretary. "I spoke to the president this morning, he supports me fully," said the former Fox News host. President-elect Trump is reportedly considering...

Trump Might Have a Job for DeSantis
Trump Might Have
a Job for DeSantis

Trump Might Have a Job for DeSantis

Florida governor is among possible replacements for Pete Hegseth as defense secretary: reports

(Newser) - If Pete Hegseth's background check proves troublesome, President-elect Trump won't be ill-prepared. Trump is eyeing replacements for his pick as defense secretary as Hegseth finds himself deeper and deeper in muck, media outlets are reporting, noting Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is among those who could nab the job....

Report: Hegseth's Fox Colleagues Worried About His Drinking

Co-workers anonymously describe behavior they found concerning

(Newser) - Pete Hegseth was hit with another controversial report Tuesday. Ten current and former Fox News employees tell NBC News that during Hegseth's tenure as a co-host of Fox & Friends Weekend—which started in 2017 and ended after President-elect Trump announced Hegseth as his choice to lead the Defense...

Senators Back Hegseth as Another Controversy Is Revealed

Member of Trump's inner circle was apparently no fan of Hegseth's years back

(Newser) - The controversy around Pete Hegseth is growing. Sources tell CBS News that back in 2016, allegations of financial mismanagement, sexual misconduct, a toxic workplace environment, and alcohol problems including public intoxication led to a group of Republicans pushing to remove Hegseth as head of a charity for veterans. Hegseth started...

Email to Pete Hegseth From His Mom Is Raising Eyebrows

Penelope Hegseth is now disavowing her 2018 letter in which she accused him of abusing women

(Newser) - "The family dynamics of Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump's nominee for secretary of defense, have burst out into the open," reports the Guardian , after a six-year-old email to him from his own mother was leaked to the media. The New York Times got its hands on the 2018...

Canadian General Gives Answer on Women in Combat

Idaho Republican had suggested deploying female troops is problematic

(Newser) - The first woman to command Canada's military called out a US senator on Saturday for questioning the role of women in combat. Gen. Jennie Carignan responded to comments made by Idaho Republican Sen. Jim Risch, the ranking member of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the AP reports. Risch...

Newly Released Report Details Hegseth Assault Allegation

It provides their differing accounts of sexual encounter in his hotel room

(Newser) - The 2017 sexual assault allegation that has complicated Pete Hegseth's path to becoming the next defense secretary just took another turn. A report on the incident filed by police in Monterey, California, was released on Wednesday night, with the city attorney's office declaring that because Hegseth himself requested...

Jon Stewart Rips Morning Joe Trump Meeting

You were just calling him Hitler, he points out

(Newser) - Mika Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough are taking flak for their surprise visit to meet President-elect Trump at Mar-a-Lago from both the left and right. Jon Stewart, for example, played a clip of Brzezinski asking viewers, "For those asking why we would go speak to the president-elect during such fraught...

Controversy Over Defense Pick Caught Trump Team Off Guard

But president-elect backs pick for defense amid allegations of sexual assault, reports NYT

(Newser) - Donald Trump has made clear to aides that he's sticking with Fox host Pete Hegseth as his pick for defense secretary amid allegations of a sexual assault , reports the New York Times . The newspaper's Maggie Haberman reports that Trump spoke with Hegseth a few days ago, after the...

Hegseth, Who Denies Sexual Assault, Paid Accuser
Defense Nominee Paid Accuser

Defense Nominee Paid Accuser

Pete Hegseth denies sexually assaulting a woman in 2017

(Newser) - President-elect Trump's choice for secretary of defense paid a woman who accused him of sexual assault, his lawyer said, but insists the 2017 encounter was consensual. Timothy Parlatore said that Pete Hegseth was "visibly intoxicated" at the time and that California investigators came to the conclusion the woman...

Defense Chief Pick Was Hit With Sex-Assault Claim in 2017

Trump nominee Pete Hegseth was accused in 2017, but no charges were filed

(Newser) - Pete Hegseth, the Fox News host who is Donald Trump's nominee to lead the Department of Defense, was accused of sexual assault in 2017 after a speaking appearance at a Republican women's event in Monterey, California, according to a statement released by the city. No charges were filed...

Defense Chief Pick Not a Fan of Women in Combat
Potential Defense Chief:
No Women in Combat
the rundown

Potential Defense Chief: No Women in Combat

It's not clear if Pete Hegseth would attempt to reverse Pentagon rule

(Newser) - "I'm straight up just saying that we should not have women in combat roles," Fox News host Pete Hegseth declared on a recent podcast. The reason his view is gaining attention, of course, is because Hegseth is President-elect Trump's choice to be the next defense secretary...

Trump Picks Fox Host for Defense Secretary
Trump Picks Fox Host
for Defense Secretary
UPDATED

Trump Picks Fox Host for Defense Secretary

Mike Huckabee is nominee for ambassador to Israel

(Newser) - President-elect Trump named more members of his administration Tuesday, including Fox host Pete Hegseth, his nominee for secretary of defense. "Pete has spent his entire life as a Warrior for the Troops, and for the Country," Trump said in a statement, per CNN . Hegseth, 44, is an Army...

16 Stories