Pete Hegseth, a former Fox News host and Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Defense, was excoriated by Democratic senators over his ability to lead the Pentagon and allegations of sexual assault during a Tuesday confirmation hearing.
Hegseth, one of Trump’s most contentious Cabinet picks, appeared rattled by questions on military protocol and foreign policy, and had few answers over past controversies.
In one exchange, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., asked the National Guard vet “how many members are in ASEAN?” referring to the alliance of Southeast Asian nations.
“I couldn’t tell you the exact amount of nations in that, but can tell you we have allies in South Korea, in Japan, and in AUKUS with Australia,” Hegseth responded. Duckworth noted that none of those nations were ASEAN members.
Hegseth, who last year said women shouldn’t serve in combat roles, demonstrated gaps in his understanding of hiring practices for female enlistees, too.
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., expressed concern over Hegseth’s “terrible” quotes on women in combat roles, asking him why he “denigrated active-duty service members” but claimed he supported all Americans serving in combat roles in a pre-hearing questionnaire.
Hegseth responded by arguing that “standards have been changed” in military hiring practices to ensure more women could serve.
“Commanders meet quotas to have a certain number of female infantry officers,” Hegseth suggested before Gillibrand tore into the claim.
“Commanders do not have to have a quota for women in the infantry. That does not exist,” Gillibrand said. “There are not quotas.”
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Beyond misunderstandings of military function, senators grilled Hegseth on allegations of sexual assault that have bogged down his confirmation process. In 2017, a police report was filed on Hegseth’s alleged assault of a woman in California, conduct his mother cited in an email to her son claiming he “abused” women.
In one exchange, Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., asked about allegations, which Hegseth called "anonymous smears" in response.
Kelly noted that Hegseth offered up conflicting defenses for the assault allegations and Hegseth’s reported history of alcohol abuse, the former of which the FBI did not fully scrutinize in its background check.
“Which is it — have you overcome personal issues, or are you the target of a smear campaign? It can't be both. It's clear to me that you're not being honest,” Kelly said. “You know the truth would disqualify you from getting the job.”
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