Hegseth, a former Fox News host, will appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee having met previously with numerous Republican senators on the panel but only one Democrat in the weeks since Trump on Nov. 12 first announced his intended pick to lead the Defense Department.
Democrats have cried foul in the days leading up to the hearing, claiming Hegseth has refused to make himself available to them in the same way he has GOP lawmakers, and has failed to provide key vetting information as they look into a series of scandals and scathing media reports on the Army veteran.
Hegseth’s camp has hit back on that allegation, asserting he has reached out to all Senate Democrats starting well before the Christmas holiday — and in some cases before Thanksgiving — but that many did not respond or declined to meet with him until the eleventh hour.
What’s more, on Saturday the top two members of the Senate Armed Services Committee — Chair Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and ranking member Jack Reed (D-R.I.) — were briefed by transition officials late Friday afternoon for more than an hour regarding the FBI’s findings on Hegseth from its background check, a Congressional aide confirmed to The Hill.
But several Democrats on the Armed Services panel said they remained concerned they don’t have sufficient information to question Hegseth come Tuesday, including Sens. Tammy Duckworth (Ill.) and Richard Blumenthal (Conn.). There’s also worry the FBI’s background check into Hegseth may not have been thorough, and that it took far too long to get to the committee.
Hegseth has frequented the Capitol while seeking to secure his nomination, meeting with key senators, including a handful in the GOP who have expressed some skepticism or concern over his past behavior and controversial remarks.
Hegseth can only afford three GOP defections to still be confirmed, should every Democrat and Independent senator vote against him. CBS News reported last week that Thune privately told the incoming president he believes Hegseth has the GOP vote clinched.
But even some of Hegseth’s supporters have warned the process will be unpleasant, given Hegseth’s alleged history of womanizing, heavy drinking and financial mismanagement.
Several more potentially explosive nomination hearings are on the books this week, including for Gov. Kristi Noem (R-S.D.) to be the next homeland security secretary, former Sen. Marco Rubio to be the next secretary of state, and John Ratcliffe to be the next director of the Central Intelligence Agency; all take place Wednesday morning.
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
