Hegseth future in doubt as even Trump allies raise questions
CNN
Donald Trump’s choice of Pete Hegseth to run the Defense Department is in jeopardy amid questions from some key GOP senators over whether he’s fit for the job, forcing the president-elect’s team to maneuver behind the scenes to avoid a second Cabinet pick from collapsing amid a Republican revolt.
Donald Trump’s choice of Pete Hegseth to run the Defense Department is in jeopardy amid questions from some key GOP senators over whether he’s fit for the job. The pressure is forcing the president-elect’s team to maneuver behind the scenes to avoid a second Cabinet pick from collapsing amid a Republican revolt, all while alternate names for Defense secretary, should Hegseth falter, begin to emerge. No Republicans have said they will not support Hegseth, but even some of the GOP senators closest to Trump, including Sen. Lindsey Graham, are now wondering whether Hegseth can survive the tightrope walk to confirmation, sending an ominous signal for the incoming White House. Hegseth will need to limit defections to three GOP senators, assuming all Democrats vote against him, and there are already more than three senators who are uncertain if they’ll back him. “He obviously has a chance to defend himself here. But some of this stuff is – it’s going to be difficult,” Graham, a longtime military veteran and South Carolina Republican, said on Tuesday. Hegseth, who has denied any wrongdoing, is under intense scrutiny amid a series of misconduct allegations, including a sexual assault allegation from 2017, which he has denied and in which no charges were filed. “He has not been forthright with the Transition team staff and the president-elect and vice president-elect,” a senior Trump transition source told CNN, noting that as of Tuesday evening, Hegseth’s nomination is in trouble. The source pointed to Wednesday – when both Hegseth and his mother are expected to be interviewed on Fox – as “absolutely critical.”
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