Official statement or report from the Senate Armed Services Committee

Trump Defense Nominee Hegseth Faces Misconduct Allegations; Senator Calls for Disqualification

Dec 2, 2024, 02:41 PM

Donald Trump's nominee for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, is facing serious allegations of past misconduct, including financial mismanagement, sexual impropriety, and repeated intoxication while leading veterans advocacy groups. According to a New Yorker report by Jane Mayer, whistleblower documents indicate that Hegseth was forced to resign from leadership positions at Veterans for Freedom and Concerned Veterans for America, where he served as president from 2013 to 2016, due to these issues. Allegations include that he was repeatedly intoxicated on the job, engaged in sexist behavior, misused donor funds, and sexually pursued female staffers, whom he divided into "party girls" and "not party girls." In one incident, Hegseth allegedly had to be restrained from joining dancers on stage at a Louisiana strip club while intoxicated. In another, he was reportedly heard drunkenly chanting "Kill All Muslims!" at a bar in Ohio in 2015. One former colleague stated, "I've seen him dragged away not a few times but multiple times. To have him at the Pentagon would be scary." Additionally, his mother had previously accused him of mistreating women in a 2018 email, though she has since apologized and retracted the statements. The revelations have led to increased scrutiny of Hegseth's nomination, with Senator Richard Blumenthal stating that reports of Hegseth being intoxicated while acting in his official capacity should disqualify his nomination. His odds of confirmation have dropped significantly, with some sources indicating his nomination is in grave danger. Hegseth did not respond to questions about the allegations when meeting with Senator Tommy Tuberville.