'Visibly intoxicated': Trump’s defense head pick reportedly paid off sex assault accuser

Donald Trump's pick for Defense Secretary, Fox News host Pete Hegseth, paid off a sexual assault accuser, according to the Washington Post's exclusive reporting Saturday.

Reports have suggested Trump chose Hegseth for the position in part because of Hegseth's abilities as a TV culture warrior on TV. It has also been reported that Trump's team was thrown for a loop when it was revealed that he had been accused of sexual assault.

Now, the Washington Post has reported additional details.

"Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of defense, paid a woman who accused him of sexual assault as part of a nondisclosure agreement, though he maintained that their encounter was consensual, according to a statement from his lawyer Saturday and other documents obtained by The Washington Post," the outlet reported over the weekend. "Hegseth’s attorney, Timothy Parlatore, said that Hegseth was 'visibly intoxicated' at the time of the incident, and maintained that police who were contacted a few days after the encounter by the woman concluded that 'the Complainant had been the aggressor in the encounter.' Police have not confirmed that assertion."

The Post further reported that Hegseth "agreed to pay an undisclosed amount to the woman because he feared that revelation of the matter 'would result in his immediate termination from Fox,' where he works as a host."

"The statement came after a detailed memo was sent to the Trump transition team this week by a woman who said she is a friend of the accuser," Michael Kranish, Josh Dawsey and Jonathan O'Connell wrote. "The memo, a copy of which was obtained by The Post, alleged he raped the then-30-year-old conservative group staffer in his room after drinking at a hotel bar."

Read the full report here.