Here’s who Trump might pick for defense secretary if Hegseth withdraws

04 December 2024

Fox News personality Pete Hegseth appears to be in an uphill battle to be confirmed as the next secretary of defense. Now, President-elect Donald Trump is considering several alternatives if his first choice doesn't pan out.

On Wednesday, ABC News senior White House correspondent Selina Wang tweeted that there are at least six Republican senators who "aren't behind" Trump's choice to oversee the Pentagon. This would sink Hegseth's confirmation, as any Cabinet nominee can only afford three Republican defections if they hope to be confirmed with Vice President-elect JD Vance casting the tie-breaking vote (assuming all Democrats also vote no).

According to Wang, Trump may end up nominating a secretary of defense more in line with the Republican establishment if Hegseth withdraws his name from consideration. This includes two-term Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis (who ran against Trump in the 2024 Republican primary), Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), Sen. Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.) and Rep. Mike Waltz (R-Fla.), who Trump has already picked as his National Security Advisor.

The Republican backlash to Hegseth has been slowly building as more reports come out about his alleged alcoholism and lingering questions about a 2020 sexual assault settlement. NBC News reported Wednesday that 10 of Hegseth's current and former coworkers at Fox News say he frequently showed up drunk on set for the Fox & Friends Weekend show that airs at 6 AM, reeked of alcohol and complained about hangovers. They added they Hegseth required colleagues to "babysit" him, including calling to wake him up so he wouldn't be late for work.

Hegseth's mother, Penelope, also wrote a lengthy email condemning his "abusive behavior" toward women while he was in the midst of a contentious divorce from his second wife, Samantha. The New York Times reported that the email — which Penelope Hegseth has since apologized for writing – described his behavior as "dishonesty, sleeping around, betrayal, debasing [and] belittling." And she told him to not bother writing back, saying she expected him to "twist and abuse everything I say anyway."

In 2017, Hegseth was accused of sexually assaulting a woman at a Republican conference in California, who suspected he drugged her before the alleged assault. Hegseth maintained the encounter was consensual, though he paid her an undisclosed sum of money in 2020 after she filed a lawsuit, which required she sign a non-disclosure agreement.

Trump's appointments of both Hegseth as defense secretary-designate and Kash Patel as the potential next FBI director came as welcome news to Russia-1 host Vladimir Solyvyov. Daily Beast columnist Julia Davis posted the clip of Solyvyov saying the two would "quickly dismantle America," saying: "And the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah."

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