Trump Appears Ready to Pivot Away from Hegseth

When Donald Trump nominated Fox News personality and Army veteran Pete Hegseth as his Secretary of Defense, I was as stunned as the next guy.

Now, it seems as though Trump is ready to move on, even if he is not saying it publicly.

Challenges

We all knew about the sexual misconduct allegations that had been made against Hegseth before.

Those allegations were investigated, and as far as the police were concerned, there was no evidence to support the woman’s claim, so no charges were ever filed (Hegseth, however, did pay the woman off to make the claims go away).

There was something else in that claim that slipped by a lot of people, but for those who knew Hegseth, it was the real reason for concern… his drinking.

Hegseth more or less admitted that he had gotten black-out drunk that night, but it appears to be the tip of the iceberg.

Workplace Problems

Several reports surfaced this week about Hegseth's drinking being a regular problem. For instance, it was reported that while Hegseth was the president of Concerned Veterans for America, he regularly looked the other way when male co-coworkers were harassing female staffers. He was also reportedly belligerent and drunk at numerous work functions.

The New Yorker also reported, “A previously undisclosed whistle-blower report on Hegseth’s tenure as the president of Concerned Veterans for America, from 2013 until 2016, describes him as being repeatedly intoxicated while acting in his official capacity — to the point of needing to be carried out of the organization’s events.”

Even Fox News staffers have expressed concern for Hegseth, as he reportedly regularly complained about being hungover as well as smelling alcohol on him.

One former Fox employee stated, "Everyone would be talking about it behind the scenes before he went on the air.”

Time to Look Elsewhere

Now, I don’t know about you, but the last person I want in charge of the Department of Defense is a raging alcoholic or, at the very least, someone who is still partying like a frat boy in his mid-40s.

Privately, Trump has told Hegseth to keep fighting, but if you have noticed, he has not publicly defended Hegseth. Honestly, it is concerning that Trump did not do a better job of vetting Hegseth, as this now seems like an off-the-cuff pick.

The good news is that among the alternative picks being mentioned is Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who I think would be an excellent pick. Not the perfect pick, mind you, but I would absolutely get behind DeSantis for this role.

This could also serve to unite the DeSantis MAGA and the Trump MAGA contingents, who are still at odds due the attacks against DeSantis during the election. I believe DeSantis would thrive in this role, but I doubt he will say a word until Hegseth bows out, both out of respect as well as the fact he has his hands full scheduling special elections to replace the House and Senate members from Florida that Trump has already pilfered for his administration.