According to two people familiar with the matter, President-elect Donald Trump's transition team was in the midst of announcing new Cabinet members this week when they learned of a sexual assault accusation against one of his prior picks, Pete Hegseth. This shocking news shocked a number of Trump's team members who have since questioned the validity of his nomination.
After considering the veteran-turned-Fox News host for just a few days andconducting minimal internal due diligence, Trump declared he was selecting Hegseth as his next secretary of defense. The heads of Trump's transition team received a complaint about Hegseth's alleged sexual assault within 48 hours.
Information provided to the campaign supports what Monterey, California, police said was an investigation into “an alleged sexual assault” that Hegseth allegedly committed on October 8, 2017.
According to images of the event shared on Facebook, Hegseth was a speaker at a conference hosted by the California Federation of Republican Women at a hotel at the time of the alleged assault. Hegseth has not been charged in any criminal case or named as a defendant in any civil lawsuit filed in Monterey County since 2017, and his attorney denied any wrongdoing
However, a source told CNN that Hegseth was questioned by incoming chief of staff Susie Wiles on Thursday over the phone due to the nature of the accusations. Wiles questioned Hegseth about any other concerns the team should be mindful of going forward.
Prior to his announcement, Hegseth was never screened by an outside company. Without providing specifics, some former Trump employees who briefly considered Hegseth to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs during his last term in office pointed out that the opportunity was brief for similar reasons.
The president-elect and the transition team were proceeding with the nomination at this point, according to one source, despite the surprise.
However, the accusation has only made Hegseth's already precarious appointment to lead the biggest federal agency, which employs millions of civilians and military personnel and has a budget of more than $800 billion, more tense in the days that have followed. Whether Hegseth would ultimately withdraw his own nomination was a topic of open speculation in Trump's inner circle on Friday. A number of people expressed concern that more damaging information might be revealed.
Both Pentagon officials and the former president's own supporters were taken aback by the president-elect'sselectionof Hegseth, a candidate with no prior experience in senior military or public office, as his secretary of defense this week.
In an earlier statement to CNN, however, Trump's communications director defended Hegseth, stating that he "has vigorously denied any and all accusations, and no charges were filed."
Steven Cheung stated, "We are eager for him to be confirmed as the Secretary of Defense of the United States so he can begin his mission to Make America Safe and Great Again on Day One."
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