A divided Senate voted Thursday to confirm Pete Hegseth as defense secretary, with an overwhelming majority of Republicans voting in favor, a key indicator that new allegations of his personal behavior are unlikely to derail his nomination. .
Republicans voted 51-49 to break Democratic obstruction, clearing the final hurdle to a confirmation vote expected Friday night. The action comes as Democrats say President Trump’s nominee is unfit to lead the Pentagon and work to persuade a handful of Republican senators to join their opposition.
“We cannot risk appointing a leader who may have a history of being exploited by adversaries,” Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, said in a speech Thursday. “Nor can we risk confirming a defense minister who has demonstrated that he is unable to be responsible, accountable and law-abiding 24 hours a day, seven days a week as required by the job.”
In his statement, Reid referred to a sworn statement submitted to the Senate on Tuesday by one of Mr. Hegseth’s former sisters-in-law, saying that Mr. Hegseth was often drunk and “abusive” to his second wife. Mr Hegseth has denied that, as well as several other allegations that have dogged his nomination, including one of sexual assault and other reports of excessive drinking.
Some Republicans privately said the new accusations by Danielle Dietrich Heges, the ex-wife of Mr. Heges’ brother, were concerning. But on Thursday, all but two voted to advance his nomination.
Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, voted against moving forward with Hegseth’s candidacy. Before the vote, Murkowski said she could not “in good conscience” support him for the Pentagon.
“While the allegations of sexual assault and alcohol abuse do not assuage my concerns, Mr. Hegseth’s admission of past conduct, including multiple infidelities, demonstrates a lack of judgment that is unbecoming of someone leading our armed forces. , she said in a statement that also cited reports of alleged financial mismanagement of two veterans organizations he ran, as well as his past comments disparaging the role of women in combat.
To win confirmation, Mr. Hegseth would need the support of all but three Republicans, as Democrats are almost certain to oppose him unanimously, as they did on Thursday.
During his confirmation hearing, Hegseth called the numerous accusations against him “anonymous slander.”
Mr Hegseth’s second wife, Samantha Hegseth, has publicly said he never physically abused her. But a Trump transition official told Armed Services Committee leaders last week that she told the FBI in a background interview that Mr. Hegseth abused and continued to drink alcohol, according to a person familiar with the matter.
Sen. Roger Wicker, Republican of Mississippi and chairman of the committee, did not specifically mention the accusations in his defense of Mr. Hegseth on the Senate floor, but denounced what he called “a deluge of defamatory and false news reports about him.” “.
“His experience on the line of fire and his advocacy for service members make at least one thing clear: Pete Hegseth will put the men and women of our military first,” Mr. Wick said.
But Democrats warned he was woefully unqualified for the role Trump wanted him to hold.
“Does this guy with a well-known history of alcoholism, the guy you expect to get a call at 2 a.m. in a crisis, control the nuclear codes? Who are we kidding? Democratic Sen. Shu, the minority leader of New York, Chuck Schumer said, adding: “Pete Hegseth has proven to lack the ethics, sanity and judgment necessary to serve as Secretary of Defense.”
Danielle Hegseth’s testimony, obtained by The New York Times, said Hegseth exhibited “erratic and aggressive behavior” that his second wife, Samantha Hegseth Samantha Hegseth once hid in a closet to avoid him and gave safewords to close friends so she could get out safely. It also details several incidents in which she said she witnessed Mr Hegseth drinking heavily, including one while in uniform and several times to the point of passing out.
Democrats raced Thursday to provide more testimony or evidence to support the accusations, people familiar with the matter said.
But many Republicans have dismissed the accusations, pointing out that Samantha Hegseth denied that Mr. Hegseth had ever physically abused her, ignoring other affidavits from Danielle Hegseth.
“Why should I take her word for it?” Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said of Danielle Hegers in a brief interview Wednesday. “He said no. It seemed like if he had been drunk there would have been someone else out there.
Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa, who was early skeptical of Hegseth’s nomination and later solidly supported him, was equally unmoved.
“His ex-wife denies this. So it really isn’t going to go very far. “It has no weight. “
A handful of Republican senators were noncommittal, giving Democrats hope they could persuade enough to block Hegseth’s candidacy.
North Carolina Republican Sen. Thom Tillis told reporters Thursday that he was continuing to conduct “due diligence” on the nomination despite voting against Democratic obstruction.
Senator Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, has not endorsed Mr. Hegseth and declined to answer questions about his candidacy, but voted Thursday to move Mr. Hegseth’s nomination to a final confirmation vote.
