January 25, 2025
US Senate to vote on Pete Hegseth as Defense Secretary
The US Senate is slated to confirm Pete Hegseth as Secretary of Defense on Friday.
Hegseth faced charges of heavy alcohol use. Hey said he would quit drinking if he was in charge of the Pentagon.
There will be a vote Friday evening, with only a simple majority needed to ship Hegseth over, as Republicans hold a 53-47 majority in the Senate.
However, Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Senator Susan Collins of Maine have indicated they will vote no, meaning Republicans can only loosen one more item. Vice President J.D. Vance may be called upon to break a tie.
President Donald Trump endorsed his nominee as he departed the White House for North Carolina and Los Angeles, saying: “He’s a good man. I hope he makes it.”
However, Trump criticized Senator Murkowski and Senator Collins, saying: “I was surprised that Collins and Murkowski would do that.”
While Senator Mitch McConnell has not announced how he will vote, Trump indicated that Republicans may vote no.
“And of course Mitch isn’t always a vote, I guess. Isn’t Mitch a vote?” the President asked reporters.
Hegseth has alleged that Hay sexually harassed a woman at a Republican convention in California, saying she thought he denied the claims and that the encounter was consensual. He later paid the woman $50,000 (€47.602).
More recently, his designer sister-in-law said in an affidavit that Hegseth was abusive to his second wife to the point that she fled for her own safety.
Hegseth has denied the allegation, and in the divorce proceedings, neither Hegseth nor the woman claimed to be victims of domestic abuse.
Hegseth’s past comments should have no role in military combat, so there is particular concern on Capitol Hill, including among serving lawmakers.
However, Hegseth has tempered those views since he met with senators during the confirmation process.
km/wd (Reuters, AP, AFP, dpa)
