Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) reaffirmed his pressure on President-elect Trump's Pentagon nominee Pete Hegseth, asking tough questions last week because his Republican colleagues needed to hear the answers. said.
Mr. Cain appeared on CBS's “Face the Nation” on Sunday and was asked about Mr. Hegseth's repeated questions about his sexual encounters with women, his extramarital affairs and reports of public drunkenness.
“I believe he would be a very dangerous Secretary of Defense. So from what I've observed with my Republican colleagues, the only reason they vote against a candidate is because of his qualifications. Either they believe they are grossly incompetent, or they have serious character flaws,” Cain said. He pointed out that former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) withdrew from consideration for the attorney general position.
During the hearing, Kane grilled Hegseth on whether he took an oath to remain faithful in his marriage, just as he would take an oath to uphold the Constitution if he was granted the position.
The senator asked Hegseth if he had ever been violent toward his spouse. “Absolutely not,” Hegseth said.
Mr. Kaine acknowledged Sunday that Democrats are in the minority in the Senate and that Mr. Trump's nominee does not need their votes. Rather, his pointed questions were aimed at shaping and changing the thinking of Republicans.
“My questions about Pete Hegseth, his serial affairs, the sexual assault allegations he refused to disclose to President-elect Trump and his transition team, and his own mother's claim that he is a serial abuser of women. I think my question about the assertion is valid.''These are the kinds of things that could influence how Republicans view this, if not in committee, then perhaps on the floor.'' said Kane.
Kaine said it was “highly unusual” for Hegseth to refuse to meet with Democratic senators ahead of the hearing. He said other Trump presidential candidates, such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., have also been attending various meetings to show Democrats more of who they are and why they are the right person for the job. he pointed out.
“He refused to meet with us and we only had seven minutes, so we divided the topics,” Kane said. “I asked him about what he thought were obvious character flaws.”
“Overall, I think the hearing put a lot of material on the table for people to consider,” he said.
