Officials from Donald Trump's transition team on Friday reviewed the future of Pete Hegseth, the president-elect's choice to lead the Defense Department. This revision comes after revelations about a police investigation into a 2017 sexual assault accusation.
The controversy erupted after a complaint was forwarded to the transition team. According to a source familiar with the matter who requested anonymity, Hegseth allegedly assaulted a woman in a hotel in Monterey, California, after a Republican conference. The complaint was allegedly written by a friend of the victim, who then signed a confidentiality agreement with Hegseth.
Monterey police confirmed they investigated a 2017 accusation of“sexual assault”, but no criminal charges were brought. A member of the transition team said the revelations caught officials off guard. “It causes a lot of frustrationhe said. His file was not properly verified.”
Reactions and denials
Pete Hegseth's lawyer, Tim Parlatore, said Friday that the charge had been “completely examined and found to be unfounded”. Asked about the existence of a possible confidentiality agreement, he replied: “There are no other bodies in the closet. To my knowledge, there is no justification for withdrawal.”
For his part, Steven Cheung, Donald Trump's communications director, said in a statement that the president-elect supported Hegseth. “President Trump nominates high-caliber and extremely qualified nominees to serve in his administration, he declared. Pete Hegseth has vigorously denied all accusations, and no charges have been filed. We look forward to seeing him confirmed as United States Secretary of Defense.”
An October night in Monterey
The incident allegedly took place between October 7, 2017, shortly before midnight, and the next morning at 7 a.m., at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa. These details, reported by Vanity Fair, come from a police report filed on October 12, 2017. The document indicates that the complainant had a hematoma on her right thigh, but does not mention any weapon or object involved.
A Facebook post from the group Fresno Republican Women shows Hegseth speaking in front of an audience on the day of the alleged incident. Contacted by The Washington Post, Shirley Mark, president of the California Federation of Republican Women at the time, said she heard about the accusation but did not know the details.
History and controversies
Pete Hegseth has been married three times, according to court documents. His first marriage to Meredith ended in 2009 for “infidelity”, according to Minnesota records. His second wife, Samantha, filed for divorce in September 2017, a month after the birth of Hegseth's child with Jennifer Rauchet, a Fox News producer whom he married after this second divorce. A former Fox News host and member of the National Guard, Hegseth is known for his criticism of a military judged «trop woke» and for encouraging Trump, during his first term, to pardon military personnel accused of war crimes.
Besides Hegseth, other Trump nominations, such as Matt Gaetz for attorney general, have sparked controversy. Gaetz is the subject of a congressional ethics investigation after accusations of inappropriate sexual conduct, although no charges have been filed. Finally, Trump himself has been repeatedly accused of sexual harassment and assault, accusations he denies. Last year, a civil jury found him responsible for a sexual assault against writer E. Jean Carroll and ordered him to pay damages.
Original article by Michael Kranish, Josh Dawsey, Dan Lamothe, John Hudson, published November 16, 2024 in the “Washington Post”
This article published in the “Washington Post” was selected by “Libération”. It was translated with the help of artificial intelligence tools, under the supervision of our journalists, then edited by the editorial staff.
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