Editor’s note: This story will be updated.
WASHINGTON — Pete Hegseth said the numerous allegations of wrongdoing lodged against him are “a coordinated campaign of the media against him.”
Testifying before the Senate Armed Service Committee during his confirmation hearing for secretary of defense on Tuesday, Hegseth said the “left-wing” media wants to “destroy him” because he was a “change agent.”
The Senate Armed Services Committee is tasked with determining whether Hegseth is up for the job of supervising an agency that is the largest employer in the nation, with about 3 million employees and an annual budget of nearly $900 billion.
Forest Lake native Hegseth, a former Fox News weekend host, is an unconventional nominee who has been plagued by allegations of wrongdoing.
He has admitted paying an undisclosed sum to a woman who accused him of sexual assault in 2017 and employees of two veterans’ groups and at Fox News have accused him of financial mismanagement, excessive drinking and sexism.
Hegseth has denied these allegations.
He was introduced by former Minnesota Sen. Norm Coleman, who accompanied the nominee on his rounds of visits to GOP members of the committee. Hegseth only met with one Democrat on the committee, Sen. Jack Reed, D-Rhode Island, the highest-ranking member of his party on the panel.
Coleman called Hegseth “a son of Minnesota” who is “strongly focused, intelligent and decisive.”
“He is the real deal,” Coleman said.
But Reed, voicing the opinion of all Democrats on the panel, told the nominee that he did not “believe that you are qualified to meet the overwhelming demands of this job.” Reed also called the allegations against Hegseth “alarming.”
During his opening statement, which was interrupted by protesters three times, Hegseth said President-elect Donald Trump has tasked him with bringing “the warrior culture back” to the military.
“He, like me, wants a Pentagon laser-focused on lethality, meritocracy, warfighting, accountability and readiness,” Hegseth said.
He also made several references to God and Jesus and spoke of his redemption — a theme echoed by some of the Republican senators who are boosting his candidacy.
“I’m not a perfect person, but redemption is real,” he said.
Criticized for a lack of experience in management before other problems with his nomination came to light, Hegseth would take the reins of the Pentagon as the United States faces threats from Russia, China, Iran and adversaries around the world. If approved by the committee, the full Senate would vote on whether to confirm him.
GOP members of the Senate Armed Services Committee who hold a majority on the panel lauded Hegseth’s service in the National Guard, which included tours of combat, and the unconventional nature of his candidacy.
“The nominee is unconventional, just like that New York developer who rode down an elevator in 2016 to become president,” said Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., who is the chairman of the panel.
Democrats, meanwhile, drilled into allegations of misconduct and Hegseth’s own controversial words and writings.
Speaking of Hegseth’s writings about women’s role in the military, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., called them “devastating.”
The Democratic senator read one comment. “We need moms, but not in the military, especially in combat roles,” she said.
Ana Radelat
Ana Radelat is MinnPost’s Washington, D.C. correspondent. You can reach her at aradelat@minnpost.com or follow her on Twitter at @radelat.
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