The Democrat Media Industrial Complex reports that there is “profound fear and anxiety” over Secretary of Defense aspirant Pete Hegseth at the Pentagon. That’s a big “WHO CARES?” from me. Democrats, though, don’t care about the people who work in that building. No, the Senate Democrats of the Armed Services Committee are looking to get a scalp. Now that Matt Gaetz has taken a powder, their most likely victim would be Hegseth, not for his qualifications, but for his personal life. This is some pretty raw stuff, be forewarned.

Former Fox News Fox & Friends Weekend Co-host Pete Hegseth seemed like a pretty okay kind of guy. Army National Guard and a big kid type. I was surprised but not displeased when Trump tapped Hegseth to be SecDef for Trump 2.0. He’s written a couple of books, including Battle for the American Mind and The War on Warriors. He is not the Pentagon type. Those Perfumed Princes would hold no interest for him. He is fast and witty and loves our country. Like, the opposite of Crying Adam Kinzinger.

Kinzinger lost his seat to redistricting, but he lost his damn mind before that. When he thought the Democrats would get Donald Trump and Trump would not be able to come back from the charges, Kinzinger went full Bridge Troll. He now works as a talking head for CNN, which is totally on brand. From The Hill:

Former Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) said that the hearings to appoint former Fox News host Pete Hegseth as secretary of Defense would be “pretty brutal,” considering the nominee’s sexual assault allegations.

“The military’s had an issue with sexual assault that they’ve been trying to address for a number of years, and now you’re putting the guy that’s potentially guilty of that in charge of the Pentagon,” he said on a Thursday night CNN appearance. “The hearings are going to be pretty brutal for him, and you know, we’ll see what comes out of that.

snip–

Kinzinger added that it is possible more information about the allegations comes to light during the confirmation hearings, but, given Trump’s hold on the GOP, odds could be in Hegseth’s favor.

“The vast majority of Republicans will do whatever Donald Trump wants, and he wants [secretary of Defense] to be Pete Hegseth,” he said. “I think there’s going to be some senators that actually look at this very critically. I would say it’s about 50/50 chance he gets approved right now.”

Oh, naff off, Kinzinger. Kinzinger has never been right about a thing. The sexual assault charge is very problematic. The sexual assault charge has created “profound fear and anxiety” among women, according to the Pentagon:

“When you have a leader that has already been credibly accused of sexual assault and then already has other signals in his background that he’s not concerned about the contributions that women can make to national security, it could create bad signals up and down the chain of command,” said one Defense Department official, who like others was granted anonymity to speak candidly. “I imagine there is already profound fear and anxiety among women in uniform.”

In 2017, a woman told police that Hegseth, a former Fox News host and Army veteran, sexually assaulted her after barring the door to her hotel room and seizing her cell phone. The police report was released to the media on Thursday. Hegseth, who has repeatedly denied wrongdoing, was never charged.

Okay so, in 2017 during Hegseth’s divorce from his second wife and after his third wife gave birth to their daughter but before their wedding, he had a speaking engagement in Monterrey, California. He met “Jane Doe”. From Yahoo:

The new document sheds light on the allegations made stemming from the incident in October 2017 at the Hyatt Hotel after a California Federation of Republican Women event where Hegseth spoke.

The then-30-year-old woman visited a sexual assault nurse examiner on Oct 12, four days after the incident, according to the police report.

She said she had been drinking champagne and believed something may have been slipped into her drink, according to the report. She also said she remembered being in a hotel room with Hegseth on top of her, but she told police she was unsure whether she was sexually assaulted.

“Doe remembers Hegseth preventing her from leaving and somehow ended up on top of her,” the report says. She told investigators Hegseth threw a towel at her and asked her “are you ok?” and “clean it up.”

The report said that “Doe does not remember what happened after that other than she ended up back in her hotel room.”

Police interviewed Hegseth on Oct. 26 about the incident. Hegseth told detectives he had been drinking beer but was not drunk. He confirmed taking the woman back to his hotel room for a consensual encounter.

“They both would stop and say ‘we shouldn’t do this’ but things consensually continued,” the report said and Hegseth confirmed he ejaculated on the woman’s stomach.h.

Let’s let Megyn Kelly take it from here:

Bumping uglies with a stranger at a conference is beyond “ick”. That’s so low rent. I know it happens but euwwww!’s Megyn Kelly doesn’t believe the accuser’s story. I can see why Hegseth paid her off and had her sign an NDA. Didn’t want to mess up his divorce or wedding. What he’s done is nothing more or less than any politically beholden Two Star. He’s not looking to get a job in the Military Industrial Complex in four years.

Pete is a total pig who needs clear psychological help for being a serial cheater but he’s not a rapist. Two parties had regretful very drunken sex.

Megyn Kelly Discusses the Key Reason She Believes Pete Hegseth Was Never… https://t.co/A3UImzKvU2 via @YouTube

— Ace Rothstein (@AceyRothstein) November 22, 2024

I concur. I also concur with Chuck DeVore over at The Federalist:

Trump’s nomination of Hegseth is about disrupting business-as-usual at the Pentagon. It is about ushering in a new era of accountability, effectiveness, and a single-minded focus on lethality. His combat experience, executive leadership, and commitment to reform make him a compelling choice for secretary of defense.

To be sure, someone should tie a bell on Pete’s ding-a-ling. Just in case.

Featured Image: Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia Commons.org/cropped/Creative Commons 2.0