Donald Trump’s disgraced pick for Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, is getting a last-minute boost from MAGA-aligned groups ahead of his Tuesday Senate confirmation hearing.
According to The New York Times, popular right-wing podcasters and political advocacy groups are going all in to make sure that former Fox News contributor Hegseth joins Trump’s Cabinet.
MAGA-friendly nonprofit Building America’s Future has aired more than $500,000 in ads claiming that Hegseth is the victim of a witch hunt, and the American Leadership super PAC reportedly launched a $1 million advertising campaign last week calling on certain senators to back Hegseth. Meanwhile, a group of Navy SEALs and other veterans reportedly plans to rally for Hegseth at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.
Of course, Hegseth is no victim. But that hasn’t stopped Trump loyalists from making him a right-wing cause célèbre. Now with the coordinated push to get Hegseth’s confirmation across the finish line, senators are facing intensifying pressure to support his nomination.
But what these ads leave out is the validity of criticism levied against Hegseth and questions raised about his personal and professional behavior. Hegseth has no experience that qualifies him for the job, he’s been accused of rape (he reached a civil settlement with his accuser in 2017), he’s been repeatedly accused of heavy drinking to the point of excessive incapacitation in public, and he has criticized policies that allow openly LGBTQ+ people to serve in the U.S. military (though he has attempted to walk back his statements to win favor among senators.)
Given the immense pressure put on Senate Republicans, Hegseth’s hearing with the Senate Committee on Armed Services will be the first public test of whether Trump’s strongman model of governance can force Republicans to bend a knee. It’s also a window into the influence tech multibillionaire Elon Musk wields, as he’s threatened to fund primary challenges to any lawmakers who defy Trump. Musk also bankrolled a pro-Hegseth ad in December.
In some ways, the pressure campaign is already working. Last month, Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa, changed her tune on supporting Hegseth. After their first meeting in December, she initially appeared skeptical about his ability to lead the Pentagon. But she later suggested that she’d vote in favor of his nomination and described her second meeting with Hegseth as “encouraging.” Notably, Ernst is up for reelection in 2026.
There might be a few relatively moderate Republicans who put up a stink and grill Hegseth on his spotty professional background. Plus, all Senate Democrats are expected to oppose his nomination. But unless enough Republicans buck their party and agree to sink his bid, just one lone dissenter won’t do the job.
It seems that outside groups are privy to that. Some of Hegseth’s biggest supporters told the Times that pro-MAGA forces can be more audacious in their support of Trump’s agenda.
“Our job is to represent the grassroots MAGA movement and help Republican senators find and keep their backbones,” said Mike Davis, who worked as a chief counsel for nominations to the Republican chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee during Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation.
Indeed, the threat of primary challenges alone has already scared some Republicans into submission. But even without MAGA lovers’ buy-in, the odds of confirmation are looking good for Hegseth. Last week, for instance, Senate Republican Leader John Thune reportedly assured Trump that Hegseth has enough GOP support.
That doesn’t mean that Hegseth’s background won’t get tested, however. Republicans have already warned Hegseth that he’s likely to face a deluge of uncomfortable questions about both allegations of sexual misconduct and of his apparent drinking problem.
Unfortunately for the nation, a win for Hegseth likely means that some of Trump’s other controversial Cabinet picks might also be on their way to Washington, D.C.
Like Steve Bannon, who was an architect of Trump’s 2016 presidential win, told the Times: The pro-Hegseth grassroots mobilization is only the beginning.
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