WASHINGTON (AP) 鈥 Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump's pick for Defense Secretary, spent a second day on Capitol Hill, meeting privately with Republican senators amid rising questions about his ability to effectively lead the Pentagon.
told reporters Tuesday that he was planning to sit down with senators, even with those potentially skeptical of .
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to meet with every senator that wants to meet with us, across the board,鈥 Hegseth as he went from office to office. 鈥淎nd we welcome their advice as we go through the advice and counsel process.鈥
Trump tapped the Fox News co-host, a former Army 香港六合彩挂牌资料 Guard major and combat veteran who deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan, as his Secretary of Defense, typically among the first Cabinet posts to be considered by the U.S. Senate for confirmation.
But Hegseth is running into questions amid a sexual assault allegation, which he has denied, and other emerging reports about his work conduct and history.
GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham said some of the reports are 鈥渄isturbing.鈥
鈥淚 want to make sure that every young woman that joins the military feels respected and welcomed,鈥 Graham told CBS News.
The South Carolina lawmaker told the AP later that he doesn鈥檛 know whether to believe the allegations, and Hegseth 鈥渉as a chance to say that鈥檚 true or not true.鈥
Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said he's seen the reports. 鈥淚鈥檒l get the chance to talk to him, and I鈥檓 sure he鈥檒l address them," he said. "But my view is, have the hearing.鈥
Before he was tapped to serve as a weekend host of 鈥淔ox & Friends,鈥 Hegseth served at two veterans advocacy groups, Concerned Veterans for America and Veterans For Freedom.
In new allegations this week, the New Yorker cited what it described as a whistleblower report and other documents about his time leading CVA that alleged multiple incidents of alcohol intoxication at work events, inappropriate behavior around female staffers and financial mismanagement.
NBC News reported that several unnamed current and former Fox employees who worked with Hegseth said his drinking habits raised concerns, including some who said he would show up smelling of alcohol.
The Associated Press spoke to four people who had either worked at CVA or were familiar with Hegseth鈥檚 time there who insisted on anonymity because they were not allowed to speak to the media or had signed nondisclosure agreements.
While the group鈥檚 all-day conferences could run late and often wind up at a nearby bar, three of the four said they had not seen Hegseth intoxicated at events.
One person who had been connected to CVA told the AP, however, that some employees had raised concerns about Hegseth鈥檚 alcohol use but said that his departure from the group was more connected to growing ideological differences between him and the network of conservative nonprofits funded by billionaire donors Charles Koch and his late brother, David Koch.
Trump is drawing from the ranks of loyalists to fill his administration and to Cabinet positions, often stunning Washington with unusual choices that are provocative and testing the senators who will be asked to confirm them under the chamber鈥檚 .
An early pick, , the former congressman from Florida, abruptly withdrew from consideration when it became clear that Senate support was crumbling. Gaetz, who had been investigated but never charged in a federal , faced a House Ethics .
Trump's choices can only afford to lose a few detractors in the Senate, where it takes majority approval to be confirmed. Republicans will have a 53-seat majority in the new year, meaning four GOP votes could sink a nominee, if all Democrats are opposed.
Republican senators have been weighing their options.
If confirmed, Hegseth would not only be part of critical command and control of the nation鈥檚 nuclear weapons, he would be sixth in the line of succession to the presidency. It鈥檚 a position that ages its occupants and demands constant response, due to the number of middle-of-the-night contingencies that can occur when U.S. service members are put in harm鈥檚 way.
There have been private discussions among senators about the allegations and how to approach the situation, according to one person granted anonymity to discuss the private conversations.
During a closed-door meeting with about a dozen senators late Monday evening, none asked Hegseth about the allegations against him.
鈥淵ou know what? The American people care about restoring our military,鈥 said Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, after the meeting. He decried as 鈥渟hameful鈥 the criticism of Hegseth.
While Republican senators are reluctant to raise questions publicly 鈥 and several dismissed the reports outright 鈥 many of them indicated he could face tough questions in a confirmation hearing.
鈥淭hat鈥檚 what the process is for,鈥 said Utah Rep. John Curtis, an incoming freshman senator.
Questions about Hegseth and other nominees are 鈥渨hy a background check is important, why a committee investigation is critical,鈥 said Maine Sen. Susan Collins.
Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville said after meeting Monday with Hegseth that he is very supportive of the nomination.
But Tuberville said of the allegations: 鈥淚f it鈥檚 to a certain degree, people aren鈥檛 going to vote to confirm him.鈥
Hegseth, 44, was a co-host of Fox News Channel鈥檚 鈥淔ox and Friends Weekend鈥 and had been a contributor with the network since 2014. He developed a friendship with Trump, who made regular appearances on the show.
served in the Army 香港六合彩挂牌资料 Guard from 2002 to 2021, deploying to Iraq in 2005 and Afghanistan in 2011 and earning two Bronze Stars. He lacks senior military and national security experience and would oversee global crises ranging from Europe to the Middle East.
A woman in 2017 by Hegseth after he took her phone, blocked the door to a California hotel room and refused to let her leave, according to a detailed investigative report recently made public.
Hegseth told police at the time that the encounter had been consensual and has denied any wrongdoing.
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Associated Press writers Byron Tau and Kimberly Kindy and researcher Rhonda Shafner in New York contributed to this report.
