BURSTDefense Department nominee Pete Hegseth’s plan to release a woman who accused him of sexual assault from a confidentiality agreement sets the stage for a media circus that Senate Republicans are calling Kavanaugh 2.0, a reference to the brutal Supreme Court confirmation fight of 2018.
Hegseth vigorously denies the allegation and says he’s going to plow through the Senate confirmation process despite warnings from GOP senators that it is likely to get ugly.
“I told him it’s going to be a miserable experience, sort of like Brett Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing,” said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas). The battle grew so fierce that Capitol police arrested dozens of protesters in the Senate office buildings and had to escort key senators as they walked through the halls.
Cornyn says senators are “open” to confirming Hegseth, but they want to go through the confirmation process and will be looking for “new information” that may shed light on his fitness to lead the Pentagon.
“They want the process to continue and we’ll respond to any new information that they get,” he said.
Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) said he fears the battle over Hegseth’s nomination could be worse than the brawl that erupted over Kavanaugh years ago.
“Everything is going to be elevated. I think it’s going to be Kavanaugh on steroids,” said Tillis.
The clash among senators over Kavanaugh was so intense that two former Democratic senators, Claire McCaskill (Mo.) and Joe Donnelly (Ind.), later thought it might have cost them their seats in the 2018 election.
Much hinges on whether Hegseth’s accuser would be willing to testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee, something that would be a crucial development, according to senators.
Already, two key lawmakers — Sens. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) — say they will not vote against Hegseth based on anonymous allegations.
Hegseth is scheduled to resume meetings with senators on Tuesday afternoon.
A Hegseth advisor said the nominee is willing to discuss any allegations that senators would want to ask him about during the confirmation process.
“Mr. Hegseth has assured the Senators with whom he is meeting that they will be able to fulfill their advise and consent duties when it comes to this and all topics,” the advisor said.
Incoming Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said the decision of whether Hegseth’s accuser should testify will be left to the Armed Services Committee.
“That’s obviously a decision the committee, he, and — they’re all going to have to make that,” he said, referring to the panel’s members and Hegseth. “As a general rule, I think it’s important that hearings be conducted in the light of day with full transparency.”
Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), the incoming chair of the Armed Services Committee, said he doesn’t know whether Hegseth’s accuser will testify.
“I don’t know that she will. I guess it depends on what she has to say,” he said.
Ross K. Baker, a professor of political science at Rutgers University who served several stints as a Senate fellow, said Democrats are likely to read the most jarring details of the police report filed against Hegseth in 2017.
“We must assume that it will contain some pretty graphic information, and presumably it would be presented by the Democrats at the hearing in the Armed Services Committee. I’m sure Jack Reed will have it read,” he said, referring to Sen. Jack Reed (R.I.), the top-ranking Democrat on the panel.
The woman, who is referred to as Jane Doe in the report, says Hegseth took her phone and blocked her from leaving his hotel room.
Hegseth said the encounter was consensual and made sure she was “comfortable with what was going on.”
Graham revealed during an interview with NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday that Hegseth told him he would release the woman from the confidentiality agreement.
The South Carolina senator said he wants to avoid a replay of that bruising Kavanaugh battle.
“I’d want to know if anybody nominated for a high-level job in Washington legitimately assaulted somebody,” Graham told NBC.
“However, if people have an allegation to make, come forward and make it like they did in Kavanaugh,” he added. “We’ll decide whether or not it’s credible.”
In a memorable show of anger, Graham blasted Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee for trying to “destroy” Kavanaugh’s life by digging into Christine Blasey Ford’s allegation that the conservative judge sexually assaulted her decades earlier.
Kavanaugh vigorously denied Ford’s claim.
Now the question that may make or break Hegseth’s nomination is whether the woman who filed the police report against him is willing to speak out publicly.
Doing so would subject her to intense media scrutiny and possibly legal action from Hegseth.
Senate Democrats say they want to carefully review the police report before making a decision about whether to call Hegseth’s accuser to testify.
“First thing we do is read the report. I don’t want to draw any conclusion until we’ve had a chance to look at it,” said Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (Ill.).
Hegseth’s lawyer, Tim Parlatore, told CNN earlier this month he could sue her for civil extortion or defamation if she continues to make claims that he says are false.
“If she doesn’t tell the truth, if she repeats these false statements, then she will be subject to a defamation lawsuit … she’s well aware of that,” he said.
The advisor to Hegseth confirmed that the confidentiality agreement is no longer in effect and the accuser is free to speak, provided she tells the truth.
Republican senators are under intense pressure to support Hegseth, who still has President-elect Trump’s support, despite the flurry of allegations.
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) said at an event last week sponsored by the group No Labels said Republican senators know they face political blowback if they vote against Trump’s nominees.
“The approach is going to be, 'Everybody toe the line, everybody line up. We got you here, and if you want to survive, you better be good. Don’t get on Santa’s naughty list here because we will primary you,’” she said.
Trump brought Hegseth to attend the annual Army-Navy football game in Maryland this past weekend in a show of public support.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), a staunch Trump supporter, said Trump will continue to stand behind Hegseth.
Asked about Republican colleagues softening their criticism of Hegseth, Tuberville said he doesn’t think they’re scared of Trump criticizing them but instead interested in helping the president pick his team.
“We’re all concerned that we want to help as much as we possibly can and we also understand the situation he got himself in the last time when he got people who actually weren’t very loyal to him,” he said, referring to Trump’s clashes with members of his Cabinet during his first term, including his vice president, Mike Pence.