Questioned about past, Hegseth says he is a prodigal

President-elect Donald Trump’s appointment for the secretary of defense arrived to cheers and “U.S.A.” chants in a crowded Senate hearing room on Tuesday. Protesters sitting in the public gallery disrupted his opening statement three times, shouting that he is unqualified, a Christian Zionist, and does not reflect veterans’ values. It set the tone for a contentious, multihour hearing—the first of many to confirm Trump’s Cabinet nominees.

In his opening statement, Pete Hegseth said a series of allegations accusing him of financial mismanagement and sexual abuse were a smear campaign against him. He likened himself to Trump: an outsider aiming to shake up a dusty and overburdened department. Cabinet confirmation requires a simple majority vote by the Senate after a committee votes to approve a nominee. The Senate Armed Services Committee will meet next Monday to vote on Hegseth’s nomination.

Who is Hegseth?

The 44-year-old is a Minneapolis native who served in the Minnesota National Guard from 2003 to 2014, completing several tours overseas. When he was stateside during this period, he also led veterans nonprofit organizations, ran for a U.S. Senate seat in Minnesota, and wrote books on the military and conservative values. Since 2014, Hegseth has been a regular Fox News contributor and a guest on conservative podcasts.

Why did Trump pick him?

The president-elect has said that Hegseth represents boots-on-the-ground experience that the upper levels of the Pentagon need. Past defense secretaries have also had ground combat experience, but Republican senators like that much of Hegseth’s experience has been outside of politics.

“We haven’t won a war in three decades and we have a major recruitment challenge,” Vice President–elect J.D. Vance posted on X. “Hegseth is assuredly NOT more of the same, and that’s good!”

During the hearing, Hegseth applauded the America First movement as the chance to return the country to meritocracy rather than identity politics.

“I know what I don’t know,” Hegseth said. “I know I’ve never run an organization of 3 million people. … I want smarter people around me than me, and you will get that at the department. I will cast their vision, build the plan, set the metrics, and hold everyone accountable.”

What changes would Hegseth make?

Hegseth made several promises throughout the hearing to root out “wokeism” in the military, mainly through diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. He also said he’d reform the defense industrial complex and fast-track emerging technology from Silicon Valley to modernize weapons systems. Hegseth said he is personally pro-life and will review any Pentagon policy that relates to abortions, particularly travel reimbursements for service members seeking abortions. Overall, Hegseth said that any policy that does not contribute to maximum lethality in the Defense Department will be cut. And he criticized the Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccine policies. He said if confirmed, he would reinstate with apologies and back pay to every service member who was removed from a post for declining to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.

What are the allegations against Hegseth?

Nearly a dozen former colleagues at Fox News anonymously told other outlets, such as NBC, that they had concerns that Hegseth is an alcoholic. In 2021, Hegseth said on a podcast that he used alcohol to “self-medicate” after overseas deployment.

In 1989, another defense secretary nominee, John Tower, also promised not to drink while serving in the position. But the Senate still voted against his confirmation. In private meetings ahead of his hearing, Hegseth promised to senators that he will not consume alcohol while serving as secretary of defense, if confirmed.

Hegseth has been divorced twice and married three times. Records from his first two marriages cite infidelity as a cause. In 2010, he had a child with and then married his first wife, who worked at a veterans nonprofit Hegseth led. He had three children with his second wife. In 2017, Hegseth had a child with a Fox News producer, Jennifer, a month before his second wife filed for divorce. That same year, he spoke at a Republican women’s conference in California to promote a new book. During that trip, an anonymous woman filed a police report accusing him of sexually assaulting her in a hotel room, but charges were ultimately not filed. Camera footage from a hotel showed Hegseth heavily intoxicated. According to Hegseth’s attorney, he paid a settlement of an undisclosed amount to the complainant last year. In 2019, Pete and Jennifer Hegseth were married at Trump National Golf Club Colts Neck in New Jersey.

Late last year, The New York Times published an email Hegseth’s mother sent him in which she accused him of abusing women. His mother confirmed sending the email but said she later apologized to her son for writing it and she does not stand by what she said.

How did Hegseth respond?

In his opening statement, Hegseth admitted to past indiscretions but said he is a changed man. He also accused a leftwing smear campaign of coordinating negative coverage and publishing allegations against him. He credited “Jesus and Jenny,” his wife, for helping him make significant life changes.

“How convenient,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said before the hearing when asked about Hegseth’s assertions that he has changed. Warren and other Democrats said they question whether Hegseth portrays the right character qualities to lead the armed forces.

After private meetings with Hegseth, Republicans told reporters they believe him. Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., said Hegseth shook his hand and promised that he does not abuse alcohol anymore and that he respects women.

“I was skeptical, I’ll admit that,” Cramer told WORLD. “But I believe in redemption. You have to have a clear-eyed, 24-hour-a-day, sober secretary. And he made that pledge to me and to several other members. I support him.”

When asked about the 2017 incident, Hegseth repeated that the matter was investigated and he was completely cleared. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said that admitting to cheating on both his wife and the time and the mother of a child born out of wedlock did not clear Hegseth of wrongdoing.

“I assume that in each of your weddings, you pledged to be faithful to your wife,” Kaine said.

“I am not a perfect person,” Hegseth answered. “Thankfully I’m redeemed by my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

When asked whether sexual assault allegations and public drunkenness were true or false, Hegseth repeated they were “anonymous smears.”

What is his stance on women in the military?

Several senators brought up Hegseth’s book “The War on Warriors” that said women should not serve in combat roles in the military. The chapter said that defense agencies have lowered standards to allow women to participate in ground combat roles: “We need moms, but not in the military, especially in combat units.” In a segment on Fox News while he was a contributor, he said that women could not measure up to men physically. Last year on a Ben Shapiro podcast, Hegseth said that women should not serve in any combat position.

“You will have to change how you see women to do this job, and I don’t know if you are capable of that,” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said during the hearing.

“I want to clarify, it’s not about capabilities. It’s about standards that have eroded in certain duty positions,” Hegseth countered. “And that affects readiness.”

Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, asked Hegseth to affirm that women who meet high standards will have equal opportunity to serve in combat roles. Ernst herself served more than 20 years in the Iowa National Guard, with a tour in Kuwait, but she was blocked from an active ground role. Hegseth said he will work with women and allow them in ground combat roles but he will also conduct a review to ensure that standards remain high. At Ernst’s questioning, he also promised to appoint a senior level official responsible for coordinating sexual assault prevention and response programs.

Why did senators ask him about financial management?

Hegseth was the executive director of two different nonprofit organizations: the startup Vets for Freedom between 2007 and 2012 and Concerned Veterans for America from between 2012 and 2017. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., submitted tax records for both into the Senate record. The 990 forms for Concerned Veterans for America show increasing deficits while Hegseth was with the organization, including mounting credit card debt.

The latest Defense Department budget stands at $850 billion. Hegseth said that even if he does not have extensive business experience, he will surround himself with advisers who do.

“I don’t think there’s a board of directors in America that would hire you as a CEO with the kind of experience you have on your resume,” said Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., said. “You’re a very capable person, but you have not convinced me that you’re able to take on this tremendous responsibility with a complex organization and having little or no significant managerial experience.”

“Senator, I have the privilege of being hired by one of the most successful CEOs in American history if confirmed,” Hegseth replied.

According to a letter submitted to the committee, the founder of Vets for Freedom said the 2008 financial crisis dried up fundraising and that Hegseth departed the nonprofit on good terms. In another letter Ernst filed, a leader of Concerned Veterans for America called Hegseth an invaluable asset to the group. The organizationapplauded Trump’s pick of veteran Doug Collins to lead the Veterans Affairs department but did not issue a statement on Hegseth’s nomination.