GOP Senator Who Was Backing Pete Hegseth Now Says He ‘Needs to Address’ New Allegations: ‘A Surprise to All of Us’
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Republican Senator Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) told reporters late Tuesday that Pete Hegseth “needs to address” the additional allegations against him, a day after saying she thought he had adequately explained away the 2017 sexual assault allegation that resurfaced after President-elect Trump appointed him to lead the Pentagon.
“These allegations that have come up just in the last 12 to 14 hours are a surprise to all of us. And so, yes, he does need to address those because this was not something of which we were aware, nor was President Trump aware of them,” said the conservative lawmaker.
Lummis added, “Some of the earlier issues that were raised about an incident in California, I think were satisfactorily addressed and would not have interfered with his nomination.”
On Monday, Axios reported on several GOP senators, including Lummis, throwing their support behind Hegseth after meeting with him on Capitol Hill. Axios wrote:
Sens. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) emerged with full support for Hegseth to lead the department — praising his vision for military reforms and dismissing the allegations.
“We were embarrassed by our departure from Afghanistan, and we want to restore American confidence in our military,” Lummis said at the time, adding that “all these other issues are side issues.”
Hegseth, the former Army veteran turned Fox News morning show host, has been dogged by allegations of heavy drinking and sexual misconduct.
He was accused and investigated in California in 2017 for sexual assault. The police eventually did not press charges, but Hegseth paid an undisclosed amount to the woman to keep the incident quiet out of fear he might lose his job at Fox.
CBS News reported on the new allegations facing Hegseth, which Lummis was referring to:
On Monday, the New Yorker reported that before he became a full-time Fox News host, Hegseth was forced to step down from two nonprofit advocacy groups — Veterans for Freedom and Concerned Veterans for America — amid complaints about his alleged behavior that included repeatedly being intoxicated while on the job, leading a hostile work environment and mismanaging the charities’ funds. CBS News reported that Jessie Jane Duff, a Marine veteran who served as one of Trump’s 2024 campaign executive directors, was among those who pushed to have him ousted from Concerned Veterans for America in 2016.
Late on Tuesday night, NBC News also dropped a report quoting several current and former Fox News employees who said Hegseth’s heavy drinking was apparent at work. Hegseth has also been dogged by past comments on his belief that women should not serve in combat and that high Muslim birthrates are a threat to the U.S.
Hegseth has vowed to fight on with his nomination amid reports that Trump is considering Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) to replace him.
