The United States Senate confirmed Pete Hegesh as the new United States Secretary of Defense in a dramatic night vote. In the country, doubts about their qualifications are emerging, given the accusations of excessive consumption of alcohol and aggressive behavior towards women. Vice President JD Vance’s vice became decisive, since he issued a tiebreaker vote, something unusual in the Senate for Cabinet candidates, who normally obtain broader support. Hegseth himself was present at the Capitol with his family.
Hegseth: A veteran of wars in Afghanistan and Iraq
In the Senate of 100 members, the ruler Republican Party has 53 members. Vice President Vance used his rare vote to confirm Hegseth’s nomination since the vote was tied 50-50.
Previously, Hegseth, former Fox News presenter and veteran combat of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, was nominated by President Donald Trump in November to direct the Department of Defense. While his confirmation process was controversial for accusations of sexual aggression and financial bad management, he has flatly denied the accusations and told the armed forces of the Senate that he has grown from his past errors.
Hegseth will lead an organization with 2.1 million members in service
The new Secretary of Defense would lead an organization with almost 2.1 million military, about 780,000 civilians and a budget of 850,000 million dollars.
Hegesh has been accused of sexual assault against women, and the most serious accusation comes from the woman who told police that Hegseth sexually assaulted her in a California hotel room in 2017 after he took his phone, blocked the door And he refused to let her out. , according to a research report published in November.
In addition, he would have paid $ 50,000 to the woman, according to the answers he provided to a senator during his confirmation process and obtained The Associated Press. Timothy Parlatore, Hegseth’s lawyer, refused to comment on the number in dollars on Thursday.
It was previously reported that Lisa Murkowski, the Alaska Republican, will vote against Pete Hegseth to become the first Republican to oppose one of the elections of President Donald Trump’s cabinet.
It is likely that Hegesh will be occupied in his early days as head of the Pentagon executing some of Trump’s first executive orders, since the president in his inaugural speech indicated that his first executive orders would involve the army, including a possible additional deployment at the border between the United States and Mexico. “Finish” the construction of the border wall.
(With AP contributions)
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