The New Yorker: Pete Hegseth forced out of veterans’ advocacy groups over misconduct allegations
CNN
Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Defense, was pushed out as the head of two veterans’ advocacy organizations amid internal allegations of mismanagement and personal misconduct, The New Yorker reported Sunday.
Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Department of Defense, was pushed out as the head of two veterans’ advocacy organizations amid internal allegations of mismanagement and personal misconduct, The New Yorker reported Sunday. A whistleblower report obtained by the magazine alleged that, during his time leading one of those nonprofit advocacy groups, Hegseth was repeatedly intoxicated at work events and gatherings with staff. It also alleges that he sexually pursued female staffers, and that the organization ignored another staffer’s alleged sexual misconduct. The report is the latest scrutiny into Hegseth, a veteran and former Fox News host with no prior government experience, ahead of what’s expected to be a tough Senate confirmation process. It comes on the heels of reports detailing a sexual assault allegation from 2017, which Hegseth has denied and in which no charges were filed. Asked by CNN for comment about the magazine’s reporting, a Hegseth adviser said, “We’re not going to comment on outlandish claims laundered through the New Yorker by a petty and jealous disgruntled former associate of Mr. Hegseth’s. Get back to us when you try your first attempt at actual journalism.” Hegseth’s team had provided The New Yorker with an identical statement. The seven-page whistleblower report was compiled by former employees of Concerned Veterans for America, the advocacy group where Hegseth was president from 2013 to 2016, and sent to its senior management in February 2015, The New Yorker reported. The magazine did not name the employees, and CNN has not independently reviewed the report. The report, according to The New Yorker, alleges that Hegseth had to be restrained from joining the dancers on stage at a Louisiana strip club where he had brought his team — and that the organization ignored a female employee’s allegation that another member of Hegseth’s staff attempted to sexually assault her at that strip club.
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