Daniel Dietrich, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's estranged former sister-in-law who now claims he abused his ex-wife, is a lifelong Democrat and is being represented by an attorney at a prominent Democratic firm. are.
Dietrich is represented by Reita Walker of Ballard Spahr, which has “strong financial ties to Biden and some Democratic politicians,” the paper said. Pennsylvania Capital Star. news organization reported:
Each attorney at Ballard Spare has been politically active for at least the past 30 years, according to open secret data. And their donations are skewed toward the Democratic Party.
But the company's political influence has nearly quadrupled during the Trump era. The previous highest amount was $272,000 in 2008. In 2016, lawyers at the firm were paid $846,000. By 2020, political donations had increased to more than $955,000, including $148,450 from newly active political action committees.
According to capitol starIn 2020, the company hosted former President Joe Biden's virtual inauguration event with the Pennsylvania Democratic Party and the Delaware Democratic Party. It also reported that one of the biggest beneficiaries of donations was Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), who attacked Hegseth during his confirmation hearing.
According to OpenSecrets.orgThe top recipient in 2024 was former Vice President Kamala Harris.
The law firm's Instagram page also promotes diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), a concept drawn from Marxist-based critical race theory. Last year, the company kicked off Women's History Month with a quote from Ms. Walker, Mr. Dietrich's attorney:
“If women want more rights than they have, why don't you take them away and talk about them?”
This quote from Sojourner Truth has always inspired me to not get sidetracked by celebrating issues. Spend less time talking and more time doing things.
“Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion,” the post reads, with the hashtag “#BallardDiversityEquityAndInclusion #DiversityInBusiness #WomenInLaw” in the caption.
It is unclear how Dietrich became involved with Walker. Because of Ballard Spahr's size and stature, Walker will likely charge upwards of $1,500 per hour.
Dietrich's claims that Pete Hegseth abused his ex-wife were made in an affidavit first reported Tuesday by NBC News.
The timeline and source of the affidavit are unclear.
NBC News reported that Senate Armed Services Committee staff had been in contact with Dietrich for “several days” prior to filing the affidavit, and that a Jan. 18 letter from Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) It was reported that he chose to come forward in response to the situation. The committee's top Democrat is seeking “a statement certifying that he has personal knowledge of Mr. Hegseth's suitability to hold this important position.”
NBC News said it received the affidavit two days before it was submitted to senators on Tuesday.
The allegations came a day after President Donald Trump's inauguration and the day after the Senate Armed Services Committee voted to advance Hegseth's nomination to the full Senate.
According to NBC News, Dietrich said in a sworn statement that one of the reasons he chose to come forward was because “making this public statement will help some senators who are still on the fence about Hegseth's “I am confident that we will vote against approval.”
“But to ensure that, I do not intend to subject myself or anyone mentioned in this statement to the public scrutiny this statement may cause,” she reportedly wrote. are.
Hegseth's ex-wife, Samantha Hegseth, also denies the charges. She wrote in an email to NBC News:
First and foremost, I have not and will not comment on my marriage to Pete Hegseth. I do not have a representative to speak on my behalf, and I do not have anyone, including reporters, committee members, or transition team members, to share or speak on my behalf about the details of my marriage. I never asked for it.
She added, “I can't trust your information to be accurate. I've CC'd your attorney.”
When asked what information was inaccurate and for comment on the affidavit, she responded Tuesday:
There was no physical abuse in my marriage. This is the only further statement I will make to you. I am telling you that I have not and will not talk about my marriage to Pete. Please respect this decision.
Hegseth's attorney, Tim Parlatore, told NBC News in a statement:
Sam never claimed there was any abuse, signed court documents admitting there was no abuse, and recently reaffirmed the same in an FBI interview. The belated assertion of Daniel Dietrich, an anti-Trump far-left Democrat who is divorced from Mr. Hegseth's brother and has been unable to come to terms with the Hegseth family, will not change the situation.
It added: “After an acrimonious divorce, Ms. Dietrich began to take the entire Hegseth family to task with her axe. …Mr. Dietrich admits he saw nothing, but now Sam was documented 10 years ago. He is falsely accused of lying to both the court and the FBI by making personal statements that he did not make.”
As noted by NBC News, Pete and Samantha Hegseth signed 2021 court documents in which the parents maintained that neither were victims of domestic violence.
NBC News also revealed that Dietrich wrote in an affidavit that he spoke to the FBI in a Dec. 30, 2024, FBI interview as part of Hegseth's background investigation, but Punchbowl News reported It reported last Monday that there was “nothing noteworthy.”
According to NBC News, Dietrich returned to the FBI four days after Hegseth testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee last Tuesday.
Vice President J.D. Vance slammed NBC News for reporting on the accusations, even though Hegseth's ex-wife denied them.
“This is a story about Hegseth's ex-wife, who herself said the story was a lie. This kind of 'journalism' is shameful and that's why the corporate media has lost its relevance. That’s the reason.”
Sen. Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.), a Navy SEAL veteran and Hegseth supporter, posted on X: “This is a desperate last-ditch attempt by Democrats and the media to smear Pete Hegseth and block his nomination. Pete's ex-wife has gone on record saying the allegations are false. But the media doesn't care because it hurts Republicans. No one should fall for this.”
Donald Trump Jr. also slammed NBC News, saying, “Notice how this 'reporter' failed to include the most important parts of the failed hit in his tweets. There is a record that he denies the allegations.” Shouldn't that be the headline here? This is exactly why we say the media is the enemy of the people! ! ! ”
“Mr. Hegseth's ex-wife is on record as saying none of this is true, and if that's true, she's in the middle of a divorce,” Arthur Schwartz, an adviser to Mr. Hegseth, said in a post. He would have used it for money and custody. You'd have to be a first-rate retard to believe this.”
Mr. Vance's adviser, Andrew Slavian, criticized this. politikofor reporting on the charges but omitting that Hegseth's ex-wife denied the charges.
“It's strange that Politico doesn't mention in their newsletter the important fact that Hegseth's ex-wife is recorded in the article denying these BS slurs. Intentionally dishonest. Why omit that fact from the newsletter unless you're trying to do so? It's journalistically indefensible.”
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