Umair
Republicans moved behind closed doors on Monday to speed the nomination of Pete Hegseth, President Trump’s nominee for defense secretary, to the Senate floor, brushing aside the objections of Democrats who have raised concerns about his personal conduct.
In a private vote, the Senate Armed Services Committee approved Mr. Hegseth’s nomination strictly along party lines on a vote of 14 to 13, with Republicans voting as a bloc to move it to the floor and Democrats unanimously opposed.
Democrats on the panel had tried to delay the vote amid deep concerns about allegations that have been raised about Mr. Hegseth’s conduct. But their efforts to slow his march toward confirmation to allow more time to investigate those claims were unsuccessful.
Shortly after Mr. Trump chose him to lead the Pentagon, Mr. Hegseth faced a raft of allegations of personal misconduct, including an accusation of sexual assault and reports of public drunkenness and financial mismanagement.
During his confirmation hearing, Mr. Hegseth denounced the claims that he sexually assaulted a woman in California and had been severely intoxicated in public as “anonymous smears.” Mr. Hegseth reached a legal settlement with his accuser in the sexual assault case, which included a nondisclosure agreement that barred her from speaking about it publicly. He was not charged in the case.
Because Mr. Hegseth’s accusers have, to date, remained anonymous, Republicans refused to let them upset their push for his quick confirmation.
“All day, I’ve been hearing about allegations,” Senator Roger Wicker, Republican of Mississippi and the chairman of the panel, said Monday before the panel’s vote.
“That sort of thing certainly is not going to stop us from sending the nomination on to the full Senate,” he said, adding, “If they were substantiated and taken seriously, we’d look at them.”
Sharon LaFraniere contributed reporting.
