Pete Hegseth He is scheduled to take the hot seat before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday in a hearing that is sure to turn into fireworks.
President-elect Donald Trump nominated Hegseth for change Pentagon As defense secretary, but the former Fox News host has been embroiled in the controversy that Democrats on the committee are expected to question him about.
“Democrats are certainly not going to make this a walk in the park by any means,” one Republican aide said.
“You'll see that Democrats are very organized, and they're thinking strategically to make sure everything is covered, and it's not an overly repetitive hearing,” a senior Democratic aide told Fox News Digital.
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“I don't think it's going to be particularly aggressive, but I think it's going to be very difficult,” the aide said. “It's going to focus a lot just on what we should expect from a candidate for this position and his shortcomings.” gold. “There are questions about the things he has done, his character and his leadership.”
Hegseth will be the first controversial change agent chosen by Trump to face questioning from lawmakers.
Republicans are expected to play defense, portraying Hegseth as a combat veteran who will hold the military accountable after years of failed audits and DEI initiatives.
With little hope of winning any Democratic votes, Hegseth will have to appeal to moderate Republicans who have previously expressed doubts about his candidacy.
Democrats are expected to attack him over his past behavior and qualifications to lead the government's largest agency, which employs 3 million people.
Pete Hegseth is set to take the hot seat before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday in a widely anticipated hearing. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Hundreds of veterans descend on D.C. to demonstrate in support of Pete Hegseth's confirmation
The 44-year-old Army National Guard veteran, He, who has toured in Iraq and Afghanistan, is relatively young and inexperienced compared to previous defense ministers, having retired with the rank of major. But Republicans say they don't want someone who has risen to the highest ranks of the military and become entrenched in the Pentagon establishment.
Hegseth is certain to face questions about his sexual assault accusation from 2017. He has admitted to paying his accuser an undisclosed sum to remain silent at the time for fear of losing his job, but denies any non-consensual sex occurred.
Former employees of veterans groups Hegseth ran accused him of financial mismanagement and heavy drinking, according to a New Yorker report, and NBC News reported that his drinking was “concerning” his colleagues at Fox News.
Hegseth denied the accusations and said he would not drink “a drop of alcohol” if appointed to lead the Ministry of Defence.
The session is scheduled to begin at nine-thirty in the morning Full of veterans who traveled to Washington, D.C., to support Hegseth in the face of the attacks.
For weeks, Hegseth had been visiting her Capitol Hill To meet with senators, including his skeptics. Last Wednesday, he met with the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, Senator Jack Reed of Rhode Island, and it appears that the meeting did not go well.
“Today's meeting did not alleviate my concerns about Mr. Hegseth's lack of qualifications and raised more questions than answers,” Reed said in a statement.
Hegseth retired from the Army National Guard in 2021. (Fox News)
Hegseth must first win a majority in a vote of the Armed Services Committee, made up of 14 Republicans and 13 Democrats, meaning the defection of even one Republican could skew the vote.
He then needs to win a simple majority in the Senate, meaning he can afford to lose no more than three Republican votes.
“I think he kind of knows that all he needs are Republican votes to be able to take office from now on,” a Democratic aide said. “His job is to keep his head down and not say anything that would create an opportunity for those (Republicans), many of whom I don't think want to vote for him, to have a reason to reconsider that. So I'm anticipating that he'll try to say very little and say it very quietly.” And politeness.”
On the committee, all eyes will be on Sen. Joni Ernst, Republican of Iowa, a veteran who initially seemed hesitant about Hegseth. After two meetings with the nominee, Ernst said she would support him through the confirmation process and looked forward to a fair hearing. She did not commit to voting for him.
Senators will also examine Hegseth's long record of public comment on television and in the five books he has written.
One such belief is that women should not fight in combat roles.
“Fathers push us to take risks,” he wrote in his latest published book, “The War on Warriors.” “Mothers put training wheels on our bicycles. We need mothers. But not in the military, and especially not in combat units.” In 2024.
Hegseth has been courting votes on Capitol Hill for weeks. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
“Men are biologically stronger, faster, bigger. And, dare I say, physically superior,” Hegseth added.
On a November 7 episode of The Sean Ryan Show, which aired just days before Hegseth was tapped to serve as defense secretary, the nominee said: “I'm saying straight up that we shouldn't have women in combat roles.”
Later, Hegseth told Fox News last December that women are among the “greatest warriors” in the United States.
“I also want to have the opportunity here to clarify the comments that were misunderstood, that somehow I do not support women in the military; some of our greatest warriors, our best warriors out there are women,” he said.
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He added that female military service members “love our nation, want to defend this flag, and do so every day around the world. I'm not assuming anything.”
