'Palpable shift': MAGA 'pressure' campaign may save one of Trump’s nominees

With former Fox News host Pete Hegseth — Donald Trump's embattled nominee for defense secretary — facing allegations of sexual assault (which he has flatly denied), public drunkenness and severe alcohol abuse, the president-elect has reportedly considered offering that position to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis instead.

But Trump and his allies haven't given up on Hegseth. And according to Politico reporters Meridith McGraw and Natalie Allison, an intense pressure campaign aimed at Senate Republicans maybe improving Hegseth's chances of being confirmed in 2025.

McGraw and Allison report that "after signaling she continued to have serious concerns about confirming" Hegseth, Sen Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) "sounded a different note" on Monday, December 9 when she described her meeting with the former Fox News host as "encouraging."

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Similarly, the reporters add, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) went from sounding skeptical about the nomination to saying he had a "very positive" meeting with Hegseth.

McGraw and Allison note that Trump's allies are threatening Senate Republicans with primary challenges if they reject his more controversial nominees.

A Trump ally, quoted anonymously, told Politico that Ernest "got the message loud and clear" from Trump's MAGA allies. And a member of Trump's transition team told Politico that Hegseth "stood strong and showed up to the Hill every day and had thoughtful conversations and meetings, and I think his media blitz was highly effective in proving he's not going to back down."

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Read Politico's full article at this link.