Washington Prepares for Fireworks at First Round of Confirmation Hearings for Trump Nominees, With Pete Hegseth Up First

Washington is preparing for a week of fireworks as the first round of President Trump’s cabinet nominees are scheduled to be questioned by members of the Senate beginning on Tuesday. The most controversial nominee to sit before a Senate panel in the coming days is Trump’s nominee to lead the Pentagon, Pete Hegseth. The announcement of Mr. Hegseth’s nomination in November was met with extreme surprise, and many began speculating that he would be forced to drop out of the confirmation process due to past allegations of sexual assault, alcohol abuse, and mismanagement of a non-profit organization. He seemed to be saved from the spotlight, however, after Congressman Matt Gaetz was nominated to be Trump’s new attorney general just one day after Mr. Hegseth’s nomination was announced. For more than a week, Mr. Gaetz dominated headlines, especially as the House Ethics Committee debated whether or not to release its report into allegations that the former Florida congressman had been a prolific user of drugs and had had sex with a minor. Mr. Gaetz withdrew his name eight days after his nomination was announced. Some Democrats are keeping their cards close to their chests ahead of Tuesday’s confirmation hearing with Mr. Hegseth. When asked by the Sun last week what he planned to ask the nominee at the hearing, Senator Kaine — who sits on the Armed Services Committee — played coy. “You know, it’s free. You don’t even have to buy a ticket,” Mr. Kaine said with a smile. “You have to tune in and check it out!”Several Republican senators have so far refused to commit to supporting Mr. Hegseth for the Pentagon role, with many saying they need to see his full FBI background check, financial disclosures, and how he answers questions under pressure at the committee hearings. He will appear before the Armed Services Committee on Tuesday morning. For several days, Senator Ernst — a 23-year Army veteran and victim of rape and domestic violence — said she was not ready to back Mr. Hegseth because of what he has said about the need to keep women out of combat roles, as well as the sexual assault allegations levied against him. After a lengthy meeting with Mr. Hegseth in December, Ms. Ernst said she would “support Pete through this process,” but declined to say if she would vote to confirm him. She also sits on the Armed Services Committee and will question him in the public hearing on Tuesday. The new lawmaker from Utah who was once a chairman of the Utah County Democratic Party but switched to become a Republican in 2006, Senator Curtis, has also not yet backed Mr. Hegseth. In a post on X after his meeting with the nominee back in December, Mr. Curtis said he would be “monitoring” the confirmation process as it plays out. According to Axios, Senator Schumer has directed his Democratic colleagues to play hardball with Trump’s slate of nominees, many of whom will also be on Capitol Hill this week, though none will be nearly as scrutinized as Mr. Hegseth will be. Mr. Schumer believes that because of how aggressive Republicans have been with Democratic nominees in committee settings during the Biden administration, Senate Democrats should be willing and able to grill Trump’s nominees this time around. The other nominees scheduled to be before the Senate this week include the nominees for the department of veterans affairs, Congressman Doug Collins; the department of the interior, Doug Burgum; the department of homeland security, Governor Noem; the department of justice, Pam Bondi; the department of transportation, Congressman Sean Duffy; and the department of state, Senator Rubio, among others. Senators have expressed concerns about a number of other Trump nominees, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s pro-abortion rights stance and Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard’s 2017 meeting with the then-Syrian leader, President al-Assad. Mr. Kennedy and Ms. Gabbard, along with Trump’s controversial nominee to lead the FBI, Kash Patel, have not had their confirmation hearings scheduled thus far.

Washington Prepares for Fireworks at First Round of Confirmation Hearings for Trump Nominees, With Pete Hegseth Up First

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