The Senate will vote on Friday night on the nomination of Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s controversial pick for US secretary of defense, but mounting concerns over Hegseth’s personal history and inexperience have raised doubts about his chances of confirmation.
Hegseth, a former Fox News host and army veteran, cleared a key procedural hurdle on Thursday, after 51 Republican senators voted to advance his nomination toward a final vote. But two Senate Republicans, Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, joined their Democratic colleagues in voting against advancing Hegseth’s nomination because of their skepticism about his qualifications.
“After thorough evaluation, I must conclude that I cannot in good conscience support his nomination for secretary of defense,” Murkowski said in a statement on Thursday. “I commend Pete Hegseth’s service to our nation, including leading troops in combat and advocating for our veterans. However, these accomplishments do not alleviate my significant concerns regarding his nomination.”
Hegseth can only afford to lose the votes of three Senate Republicans, assuming every Democratic senator opposes his nomination, so it appears he is still on track for confirmation. Two Republican senators who had been viewed as potential no votes, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky and Thom Tillis of North Carolina, both supported advancing Hegseth’s nomination on Thursday.
In a floor speech delivered on Friday, the Senate majority leader, Republican John Thune, praised Hegseth’s qualifications and predicted he would steer the Pentagon in a new, forward-thinking direction.
“A veteran of the army national guard who served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, Mr Hegseth will bring a warrior’s perspective to the role of defense secretary and will provide much-needed fresh air at the Pentagon,” Thune said.
And yet, Hegseth continues to be dogged by questions about allegations of sexual assault, excessive alcohol use and financial mismanagement of two non-profits that he led. On Thursday, news broke that Hegseth paid $50,000 in a settlement to a woman who accused him of sexual assault in 2017.
A series of podcast recordings unearthed by the Guardian also revealed that Hegseth appears to endorse the theocratic and authoritarian doctrine of “sphere sovereignty”, which is derived from the extremist beliefs of Christian reconstructionism. In the recordings, Hegseth attacked “cultural Marxism”, feminism, “critical race theory” and democracy, which he said “our founders blatantly rejected as being completely dangerous”.
The Senate minority leader, Democrat Chuck Schumer, delivered a pointed floor speech highlighting the many accusations against Hegseth and imploring Republicans to reject “one of the most erratic, unqualified and unfit cabinet nominees we have ever seen in modern times”.
“Is this man, with a history of excessive drinking, really the guy you want on the other end of the phone at 2am in a crisis, in control of the nuclear codes?” Schumer asked. “In short, we should not, cannot, must not elevate someone as erratic as Pete Hegseth to secretary of defense. We can and must – must – do better. I urge my colleagues to vote no.”
Despite that harsh criticism, Hegseth is still favored to be confirmed. The final Senate vote on his nomination is expected to take place around 9pm on Friday night.
