Senators have reportedly received an affidavit from the former sister-in-law of Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s controversial pick for secretary of defense, alleging that the nominee’s aggressive behavior prompted his second wife to fear for her safety.
NBC News reports that the former sister-in-law, Danielle Hegseth, submitted the affidavit after the top Democrat on the Senate armed forces committee, Jack Reed of Rhode Island, sent her a letter requesting a statement on her “personal knowledge about Mr Hegseth’s fitness to occupy this important position”.
A photo of the affidavit, shared by Punchbowl News, shows Danielle Hegseth’s account that Hegseth’s second wife, Samantha Hegseth, instituted a system of sending two friends a safe word to signal when she feared for her safety because of her husband’s erratic behavior.
According to Danielle Hegseth, she shared details of Hegseth’s allegedly aggressive behavior with the FBI when the bureau conducted a background check on the nominee last month.
Samantha Hegseth, who divorced Hegseth in 2017, disputed the characterization of her marriage, telling NBC News: “There was no physical abuse in my marriage. This is the only further statement I will make to you, I have let you know that I am not speaking and will not speak on my marriage to Pete. Please respect this decision.”
A lawyer for Hegseth similarly denied the accusation against him, saying: “Sam has never alleged that there was any abuse, she signed court documents acknowledging that there was no abuse and recently reaffirmed the same during her FBI interview.”
As of now, Hegseth is expected to be narrowly confirmed by the Senate despite concerns over allegations of sexual assault, financial mismanagement and excessive alcohol use. His nomination was approved by the Senate armed services committee on Monday along a party-line vote.
Hegseth’s nomination has already been marked by allegations of sexual assault and public intoxication. He paid a settlement to a woman who accused him of rape in 2017, but he denies the allegations and refused to answer multiple questions during his confirmation hearing about sexual assault and his drinking, calling them “anonymous smears”.
