Two Republican senators said they believe Pete Hegseth will receive the votes to be confirmed as the next U.S. Secretary of Defense after Tuesday's contentious hearing.
Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) and Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) participated in the “Ingraham Angle,” and Mr. Hegseth before becoming a member of President-elect Donald Trump's Cabinet. shared their evaluation of the journey.
“I have no doubt that Pete will be confirmed. I think he will have strong support from all Republicans, both men and women,” Mullin said. “I think he's the right person for this job. President Trump has done a great job selecting him to be the next Secretary of Defense.”
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Pete, a 21st Century Fox military analyst and US President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for Secretary of Defense, speaks during his Senate Armed Services Committee confirmation hearing on Tuesday, January 14, 2025 in Washington, DC, USA. Mr Hegseth. Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images (Kent Nishimura)
Mullin also noted that her Republican colleague, Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), was initially skeptical of Hegseth's nomination because of his comments about women in combat and allegations of sexual misconduct. Despite this, he praised him for supporting him. Hegseth denies the charges.
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The former “Fox & Friends Weekend” co-host said on a podcast in early November that the United States “should not be putting women in combat roles.”
“It didn't make us more effective. It didn't make us more deadly. It made the fight more complicated,” he said on an episode of “The Sean Ryan Show.”
Mr. Ernst, himself a military veteran and sexual assault survivor, spoke with Mr. Hegseth several times leading up to his confirmation hearing, before announcing his support for Mr. Trump's nomination to lead the Pentagon on Tuesday night. I also met with him.
Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) speaks with reporters after the weekly Senate Republican Policy Luncheon at the U.S. Capitol on February 14, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Cotton told Fox News host Laura Ingraham that he believes Hegseth has the votes to be confirmed by the Senate. Voting is expected to take place next week.
“I hope Democrats don't delay or block this nomination,” Cotton said. “If Democrats want to vote against it, that's fine, but President Trump deserves a secretary of defense to do his job properly. ” he said.
He decried the harm of “political correctness” and “social engineering” that are “running wild” within the military.
“Maybe we're in a draft crisis and the draft numbers are so low that readiness is compromised. Look, our military isn't entitled to pronouns on their ID tags. They take the Privilege Walk. They don't have to go through repeated diversity, equity and inclusion training sessions,'' Cotton continued. “What they deserve is rigorous, realistic training to prepare them to defend this country in wartime. The kind of training that Pete Hegseth has conducted and has carried out.”
The Pentagon is visible from Air Force One flying over Washington on March 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Patrick Semanski)
Several Democratic senators cited Mr. Hegseth's experience running two veterans nonprofits and his membership in Concerned Veterans for America and Veterans for Freedom. Hegseth was accused of financial mismanagement at the time.
Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) pressed veterans about their qualifications and experience in leadership positions.
“We're basically hiring you to be the CEO of one of the most complex and largest organizations in the world. We're the board of directors here,” Peters told his colleagues on the Senate Armed Services Committee. He said while pointing.
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“I don't think there's any board in America that would hire you as CEO with the kind of experience you have on your resume,” he added.
