Donald Trump has spent the weeks following the election nominating dozens of individuals to advise him in a second term, some of whom—terrifying as they may be—might actually be confirmed by the Senate. Yet other nominations have been so absurd that they haven’t even lasted the month. Matt Gaetz, for instance, withdrew from consideration for attorney general, citing the “distraction” of his confirmation, which was thrown into question due to sexual misconduct allegations (which he has long denied). Meanwhile, the nomination of former Fox News host Pete Hegseth to serve as defense secretary is reportedly on such shaky ground that Trump is said to be considering replacing him—with a guy he literally once claimed would be working at a Pizza Hut if not for his intervention.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Trump is “considering Florida gov. Ron DeSantis as a possible replacement for Pete Hegseth, his pick to run the Pentagon, according to people familiar with the discussions, amid Republican senators’ concerns over mounting allegations about the former Fox News host’s personal life.” According to the outlet, allies of the president-elect “increasingly think Hegseth might not survive further scrutiny,” believing “the next 48 hours to be crucial to his fate.”
Hegseth’s initial nomination was met with disbelief given his lack of leadership experience in the military and controversial comments he’d made in the past, including that “we should not have women in combat roles.” Team Trump was then blindsided by the news that he’d been accused of sexual misconduct in 2017; while Hegseth has denied the accusation and no charges were filed, he ultimately paid his accuser and had her sign a nondisclosure agreement to keep the story secret. The New York Times revealed last week that during Hegseth’s second divorce—which appears to have resulted in part from his affair with a Fox coworker, whom he impregnated and to whom he is now married—his own mother told him that he “abused” women and should “get some help and take an honest look” at himself. (Hegseth’s mother told the Times she “had sent her son an immediate follow-up email at the time apologizing for what she had written.”)
Worse yet, according to reporting from The New Yorker, a whistleblower report that was filed while Hegseth was president of Concerned Veterans for America accused him of “being repeatedly intoxicated while acting in his official capacity—to the point of needing to be carried out of the organization’s events.” The report also claimed that “Hegseth had to be restrained while drunk from joining the dancers on the stage of a Louisiana strip club, where he had brought his team,” and that, while married, he “sexually pursued the organization’s female staffers.” (In response to The New Yorker’s report, Hegseth’s lawyer sent a statement from “an adviser” to the nominee that read: “We’re not going to comment on outlandish claims laundered through The New Yorker by a petty and jealous disgruntled former associate of Mr. Hegseth’s. Get back to us when you try your first attempt at actual journalism.”)
According to the Journal, no GOP senators have publicly said that they plan to oppose Hegseth’s nomination, and Trump still backs him—at least in public. On the other hand, the Journal notes, “Republican senators who have begun meeting with Hegseth have warned him that he would face a grilling during public confirmation hearings, and they have openly said he would need to work to overcome sexual assault and other allegations. A person familiar with the matter said there were six senators who were potentially opposed to his nomination.”
In DeSantis, Trump would have a candidate with an established service record who agrees with the incoming president—as does Hegseth—that the military has become too “woke.” He would also have a loyalist turned rival turned loyalist again. During the GOP primary, the two men traded numerous insults, with DeSantis saying Trump was too old for a second term (and suggesting he accomplished nothing of note during the first). For his part, Trump portrayed DeSantis as hugely disloyal, repeatedly claimed that DeSantis shed tears while begging him for an endorsement during the Florida pol’s first gubernatorial run, and declared that without his backing, “Ron DeSanctimonious would be right now working probably at a law firm or maybe a Pizza Hut.”
Other potential candidates said to be under consideration to possibly replace Hegseth are former Pentagon official Elbridge Colby and GOP senator Joni Ernst.
