Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Defense, combat veteran Pete Hegseth, came out swinging on Wednesday, during his first sit-down interview since being tapped for the position.
Hegseth has been the subject of numerous legacy media attacks since his nomination, including one from NBC News fueled by anonymous sources and another from The New York Times which included the publishing of a leaked private email from Hegseth’s mother.
Speaking to journalist Megyn Kelly, Hegseth said he’s done letting the media run with stories about him. “What has been said about me, it was so ridiculous and all anonymous that we didn’t want to give it oxygen. You don’t want to respond to things that don’t merit a response,” he said. “But going forward … it’s our time to stand up and tell the truth and our side.”
The former Fox News host claimed what’s happening to him now is a “smear” job.
“It is the classic ‘art of the smear,’” he told Kelly. “Take whatever tiny kernels of truth, and there are tiny, tiny ones in there, and blow them up into a masquerade of a narrative about somebody that I’m definitely not.”
He also ripped the media for “never asking the people who were involved directly” while they’ve reported on him.
“I’ve got a list right here of people,” he said, pulling out a sheet of paper from his coat pocket. “Will Cain and my hosts at Fox News have come out, all the folks on ‘Fox & Friends’ have all come out and said, ‘this is not Pete, and we’ve worked with Pete for 10 years, every single morning, every single day.”
A recent NBC News story suggested Hegseth has a drinking problem and repeatedly showed up to work drunk. The story was only backed by anonymous sources, and soon after it was published, Hegseth’s old Fox News colleagues jumped to his defense — on record. His two former “Fox & Friends” co-hosts Will Cain and Rachel Campos-Duffy, for example, called the report “horse s***” and said NBC never bothered to reach out to them.
“They never asked those people,” Hegseth told Kelly. “And that’s what a smear looks like. It’s a couple anonymous nuggets, usually from disgruntled people who are fired for cause, who are jealous or want a little bit of retribution. And so they peddle stuff to reporters who are not interested in the truth, they’re interested in smearing someone who supports Donald Trump’s agenda. It’s really clear.”
Hegseth also told Kelly that he has the support of Trump, whom he met with this morning, and has had positive meetings with U.S. Senators.
“Trump told me, ‘You’re going to need to be tough as s***,’” Hegseth recalled. “But he paused again as I was walking away and said, ‘But you’re the man for this moment, I chose you because you’re the guy that’s going to put the warfighters first. … Clean house of the woke crap.’”
“‘Hey Pete, I got your back. It’s a fight. They’re coming after you — get after it,’” Hegseth said Trump told him.
“My meetings with (senators) have been fantastic,” he continued. “No one has looked me in the eye and said, ‘I have concerns and I can’t vote for you.’ In fact, most have said, let’s take a picture, and I’m behind you all the way. And that’s a reflection of Donald Trump and the strength of his election, but also the mandate to change something at the Defense Department. We’re not backing down one bit.”
In addition to his rough go with the press, it was uncovered last month that Hegseth was accused of sexual assault back in 2017. An unnamed woman claims Hegseth sexually assaulted her in a hotel room following a conservative conference. Hegseth said that the encounter was consensual, and police decided against any further action.
“It’s very simple,” Hegseth has told the press. “The matter was fully investigated, and I was completely cleared, and that’s where I’m gonna leave it.”
Notably, Kelly went through the police report on her show last month and said the accusation looks to be “bulls***” and stated that it appears the accuser “was not raped,” but panicked after her husband became suspicious that she cheated with Hegseth.
Watch:
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