Topline
President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly considering Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as a potential defense secretary nominee, multiple outlets reported Tuesday, amid growing doubts about his current pick Pete Hegseth’s chances of securing a Senate confirmation as he faces scrutiny over allegations of sexual assault and drunken public behavior.
President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly considering Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as a potential … [+]
Key Facts
According to the Wall Street Journal, which first reported on the matter citing unnamed sources “familiar with the discussions”, the president-elect’s allies believe Hegseth’s nomination “may not survive further scrutiny.”
DeSantis is a former Navy lawyer and holds anti “woke” positions similar to Hegseth and one of the most prominent national GOP figures, which could make an ideal replacement, the report added.
Politico corroborated the Journal’s report, citing two unnamed sources and noted that the cabinet role could boost DeSantis’ “political prospects” as term limits prevent him from running for Florida Gov. again in 2026.
Picking DeSantis for a cabinet role would represent a major turnaround in his Trump, who repeatedly mocked and derided the Florida Gov. once he emerged as the President-elect’s main challenger in the GOP primary.
Aside from the Florida Gov., Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, and Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., have emerged as potential contenders to replace Hegseth, CNN reported.
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What Is Happening With Pete Hegseth’s Nomination?
While no Republican senators have publicly come out and said they will not support Hegseth’s nomination, the Journal reported that as many as six have privately expressed opposition. On Tuesday, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., warned that “it’s going to be difficult” for him, as the allegations against him are closely scrutinized. The former Fox News host and combat veteran will have an opportunity to salvage his nomination on Wednesday, as he is set to appear in a Fox News interview and meet several lawmakers—including Ernst. An unnamed Trump transition team staffer told CNN that Hegseth had not been “forthright with the transition team staff and the president-elect and vice president-elect,” and this has jeopardized his nomination. According to earlier reports, the Trump transition team was also blindsided by the sexual assault allegations against Hegseth.
What Are Sexual Assault Allegations Against Hegseth?
Last month, new details emerged about a 2017 sexual assault allegation against Hegseth, which was investigated by police in Monterey, California. Hegseth’s accuser reportedly met him at an after-party for a conference of the California Federation of Republican Women. The accuser said she confronted Hegseth about his alleged inappropriate behavior with other women at the conference, before ending up in a room with him. The alleged victim believed something may have been slipped into her drink because her memory of the night’s events was hazy. In the police report, the accuser said she remembers ending up in Hegseth’s room where he allegedly took away her phone, blocked the door when she tried to leave and then sexually assaulted her. Hegseth, however, refuted the woman’s version of events and told police that the encounter was consensual. The former Fox anchor’s lawyer Timothy Parlatore said Hegseth had paid the woman a settlement in 2020 as part of a nondisclosure agreement. Parlatore also told the Washington Post that Hegseth was “visibly intoxicated” at the time of the incident and alleged the accuser “had been the aggressor,” and led Hegseth “by the arm to his hotel room,” According to a 2018 email obtained by the New York Times, Hegseth’s mother, Penelope Hegseth, asked him to “get some help and take an honest look at yourself” after “all the women (and I know it’s many) you have abused in some way” by being a man that “belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around and uses women for his own power and ego.” Hegseth’s mother told the outlet she had written the mail “in anger, with emotion,” and had immediately apologized to him.
What Are The Other Allegations Against Hegseth?
Earlier this week, the New Yorker reported that Hegseth was forced to step down as the head of two nonprofit veterans groups he ran—Veterans for Freedom and Concerned Veterans for America—after being accused of engaging in repeated drunken public behavior in front of staff. In 2014, while serving as the president of Concerned Veterans for America, Hegseth allegedly brought staff to a Louisiana strip club and had to be restrained from joining the dancers on stage. Later in 2015, while partying at a hotel bar in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, Hegseth allegedly yelled “Kill All Muslims.”
Further Reading
Who Is Pete Hegseth? What To Know About Trump’s Defense Secretary Pick. (Forbes)
