Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Defense, emerged from a fiery confirmation hearing on Tuesday with momentum that appears to have solidified his path to Senate approval. Over the course of four hours, the nominee faced pointed and, at times, combative questioning from Democratic senators, while Republicans largely defended his qualifications and policy stances. Prior to the hearing, Hegseth’s confirmation was far from certain.
Hegseth, the former Army officer and Fox News contributor, fielded sharp criticism from Democrats who questioned his comments on military diversity programs and past advocacy for overhauling the Pentagon’s bureaucracy. Hegseth, in response, maintained his demeanor and stood firm on his positions.
Several moderate Republican senators had expressed their hesitations about his rhetoric and unorthodox views on military reform. However, many noted that the aggressive tactics employed by some Democrats during the hearing may have unintentionally unified GOP senators around Hegseth, making his confirmation increasingly likely. A dramatic shift in sentiment was reflected in prediction markets, where Hegseth’s odds of confirmation soared to 90%, up from roughly 50% earlier in December. Polymarket, a popular prediction platform, showed significant betting activity following the hearing.
Outside the hearing, the partisan divide was evident in public reactions. Commentator Dan Turrentine took to social media, suggesting that Democratic senators had overplayed their hand. “Going into Pete Hegseth’s hearing, I thought it was 50/50 he’d be confirmed due to some Republican concerns,” Turrentine tweeted. “Some Democrats were so bad, so over-the-top, so embarrassing today, I now wonder if they made it impossible for any Republican senator to vote against him.”
On Tuesday, Hegseth retorted that media outlets like the New York Times and New Yorker have concocted a “smear campaign” against him, bullying his mother into answering questions about a disavowed email she sent her son years ago or pestering Fox News employees for negative anecdotes about his time on the set of “Fox & Friends. […]
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