Some GOP senators seem tepid on Hegseth nomination as allegations pile up

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Some GOP senators seem tepid on Hegseth nomination as allegations pile up

Washington — A number of *********** senators have expressed concern about Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Defense Department, potentially putting his intended nomination at risk. 

Hegseth, who has been meeting with Senate Republicans on Capitol Hill this week to try to build support ahead of his confirmation hearings, has faced a round of negative stories involving allegations of ******* misconduct, financial mismanagement at veterans’ charities, repeated intoxication and infidelity. 

“Some of these articles are very disturbing. He obviously has a chance to defend himself here, but some of this stuff is, it’s going to be difficult,” *********** Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina told reporters Tuesday. “Time will tell.” 

*********** Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana, who noted he has also read the reporting and is aware of the allegations, said Hegseth will have to address them. 

“I want to know if they are true and I want to hear his side of the story and he is going to have to address them,” he said Tuesday, adding that he wasn’t sure if Hegseth’s nomination would face headwinds.

On Monday, the New Yorker

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that before he became a full-time Fox News host, Hegseth was forced to step down from two nonprofit advocacy groups — Veterans for Freedom and Concerned Veterans for America — amid complaints about his alleged behavior that included repeatedly being intoxicated while on the job, leading a hostile work environment and mismanaging the charities’ funds. CBS News reported that Jessie Jane Duff, a Marine veteran who served as one of Trump’s 2024 campaign executive directors, was among those who pushed to have him ousted from Concerned Veterans for America in 2016.

A lawyer for Hegseth has denied the allegations. 

Sen. Cynthia Lummis, a Wyoming ***********, said Tuesday that the allegations “are a surprise to all of us” and that his ability to be confirmed by the Senate “depends on how he addresses the issues that have been raised.” Lummis said the allegations also came as a surprise to Trump. 

“Some of the earlier issues that were raised about an incident in California, I think were satisfactorily addressed and would not have interfered with his nomination, but some new things that have come to light in the last 12 to 14 hours are things he needs to address,” she said. 

Hegseth, an Army veteran turned Fox News star, was investigated for ******* ******** in 2017 in Monterey, California. Authorities declined to file charges in the case, saying none were “supported by proof beyond a reasonable doubt.” Hegseth told investigators that the ******* encounter with the woman was consensual and he has denied any wrongdoing. He paid a confidential settlement to the woman out of concern that her accusation could result in his ******* from Fox News, his lawyer said after the claims became public in mid-November. 

Asked Monday whether he thought the Senate would confirm him to lead the Pentagon, Hegseth said he was “taking it meeting by meeting.”

Trump has already had one Cabinet pick withdraw from the process. Former Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida pulled his name from consideration amid scrutiny over allegations of **** trafficking and illicit ***** use, which he denies. 

Caitlin Yilek

Caitlin Yilek is a politics reporter at CBSNews.com, based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked for the Washington Examiner and The Hill, and was a member of the 2022 Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellowship with the National Press Foundation.

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