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Pete Hegseth, the former co-host of Fox & Friends Weekend, launched a broadside against media coverage of his Defense Secretary nomination in the early part of his confirmation hearing today, as he has pushed back against reports of drunkenness and a claim of sexual assault.
Hegseth was Trump’s surprise pick as Defense Secretary, but his nomination appeared to be in danger as allegations surfaced that he had been accused of sexually assaulting a woman after a night of drinking in 2017. Hegseth denied the claims, and no charges were filed. But he reached a confidential settlement with the accuser in 2020.
At the hearing, Hegseth was asked about the allegations and other criticisms, including accusations that he mismanaged two non-profits he led before he landed a Fox News gig.
Hegseth blamed the reports on a “coordinated smear campaign orchestrated in the media against us that was clear from moment one.”
“What we knew was that it wasn’t about me,” Hegseth said. “Most of it was about Donald Trump, who’s had to endure the same thing for mush longer amounts of time.”
Hegseth said that the reports were based on “a small handful of anonymous sources,” and that “we didn’t understand the depth of dishonesty that would come with it. So from story after story in the media, left wing media, we saw anonymous source after anonymous source based on second or third hand accounts.”
That said, Hegseth acknowledged that he was “not a perfect person,” but that “redemption is real.”
According to Hegseth’s financial disclosure form, he received a salary of $4.6 million from Fox News over a span of almost two years.
As the first Trump nominee to have a confirmation hearing, Hegseth’s appearance drew coverage across all the major cable news networks.
More to come.
