President-elect Donald Trump again threw his weight behind his defence secretary pick Pete Hegseth amid speculations of Hegseth likely to be replaced by Ron De Santis, and said Pete is doing very well. “Pete Hegseth is doing very well. His support is strong and deep, much more so than the Fake News would have you believe. He was a great student – Princeton/Harvard educated – with a Military state of mind. He will be a fantastic, high energy, Secretary of Defense Defense, one who leads with charisma and skill. Pete is a WINNER, and there is nothing that can be done to change that!!!” Donald Trump posted on Truth Social.
Pete Hegseth became the most controversial pick after Matt Gaetz withdrew his nomination for the post of attorney general. Pete Hegseth was hit with a spate of allegations ranging from sexual misconduct to alcohol abuse — all disqualifying him from heading the Pentagon.
While the investigation against Matt Gaetz was known to all, the allegations against Pete Hegseth vetted by Trump’s transition team caught everyone by surprise and it was earlier reported that Trump was not happy with Hegseth — and a replacement is likely and Pete may not get confirmed by the Senate. But Trump Friday made it clear that there is not going to be any replacement as he, as Trump said, is doing great as far as confirmation by the Senate is concerned.
Sexual misconduct, alcohol abuse allegations
Pete Hegseth acknowledged that he paid a woman after a sexual misconduct allegation but his lawyer said there was no misconduct and Hegseth was blackmailed into paying because of the MeToo movement while whatever happened was consensual. An old email sent to Pete by his mother led to a shockwave as his mother accused him of misbehaving with women in that mail. But his mother said that email was written in haste during Pete’s divorce from his former wife.
Many of Pete’s former co-workers claimed to have witnessed Hegseth’s drunken ruckus. But Pete said it was never an issue of alcohol abuse. Like most men who come back home from war, he has a bottle of beer or two but if he gets confirmed by the Senate, he will quit drinking — as he would treat his job like his war deployment where drinking is not allowed.
