The Democrats in the Senate have declared war. Not on Hamas or the Taliban, but on Pete Hegseth, who is President Donald Trump’s nominee for Secretary of Defense. They led the ugly charge against him Tuesday during Hegseth’s confirmation hearing in the Senate Armed Services Committee.
They slandered him, didn’t let him answer their questions, and verbally abused him. They said he isn’t qualified, can’t manage money, and accused him of sexual assault and excessive drinking. Sen. Tim Kaine, who has never served in the military, was among the worst, viciously accusing Hegseth of domestic violence.
Sen. Kaine is Hillary Clinton’s old running mate for president. Using anonymous sources and hearsay, he smeared Hegseth as a domestic abuser. “Did you ever engage in any acts of physical violence against any of your wives?” he asked Hegseth, hitting a new low for Democrats and offering not a shred of evidence. In a sickening display of partisanship, he also brought up Hegseth’s 7-year-old daughter in his questions, accusing Hegseth of cheating on the child’s mother. None of Kaine’s questions, or the questions of other Democrats, had anything to do with the military or national security.
When it came time for Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan to ask his questions, however, the topics turned to actual military issues, national security, readiness, and Alaska’s important role in securing the nation.
“Now for the most important question you will receive all day: In 1935 before the Congress, the father of the United States Air Force General Billy Mitchell was testifying about a certain place in the world. He said, ‘I believe that in the future, whoever holds [this place] will control the world. [This location] is the most strategic place in the world.’ What place was Billy Mitchell talking about? Let me give you a hint. It wasn’t Greenland,” Sullivan said to Hegseth.
“I believe he was talking about the great state of Alaska,” Hegseth replied, answering correctly.
“He was talking about the great state of Alaska. Great answer! If confirmed, will you commit to come with me to the great state of Alaska to meet our warriors who are on the front lines every day?” Sullivan said.
Hegseth said yes and reminded the room that he had trained at Fort Wainwright while in the military and said he looks forward to returning.
“I will say we are on the front lines with this new era of authoritarian aggression in Alaska. The last two years, we’ve had Chinese and Russian naval task forces, joint strategic bomber task forces in our EEZ in our ADIZ,” Sen. Sullivan explained. “After his election, President Trump put out an extensive statement on Alaska, which included the following statement: ‘We will ensure Alaska gets even more defense investments as we fully rebuild our military, especially as Russia and China are making menacing moves in the Pacific.’ Mr. Hegseth, if confirmed, will you work with me, this committee and the incoming commander in chief on continuing to build up our military assets and infrastructure in Alaska to establish deterrence in the Arctic and in the Indo-Pacific?”
Hegseth replied that, “if confirmed, Senator, it would be a pleasure to work alongside you and this entire committee to recognize the very real threat in the Indo-Pacific, the very real ways—even these past couple of weeks—that Russia has attempted to probe and push in and around Alaska, and also the very real strategic significance of Alaska vis-a-vis shipping lanes through the Arctic. There are many, many ways in which Alaska is strategically significant. With a necessary shift toward INDOPACOM, Alaska, by necessity, will play an important role in that. “
Sullivan thanked Hegseth for his focus on lethality and war fighting and then focused on the woke agenda of Biden’s military emphasis:
“I want to provide a few examples of the Biden woke military, which is not focused on readiness or lethality. I want to get your comments on it. Nobody wants an extremist or racist in our military, but one of the most disgraceful and shameful things I’ve seen over the past four years as a senator on this committee and as a Marine Corps reserve officer was, on day one, the Biden administration played up a false and insulting narrative that our military was chock full of racists and violent extremists. This reached a pinnacle in this committee when Biden’s Undersecretary of policy, Colin Kahl, the number three guy at the Pentagon, testified that one of his top goals would be to “[end] violent extremism and systemic racism within the ranks of the military.” He had no data on this. The media loved it, fanned the flames, wrote baloney stories on this false narrative. Disappointingly, some of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle here reinforced this ridiculous narrative, one even suggesting almost 10% of our uniformed military were extremists. 200,000 members. Ridiculous, by the way, from this committee on the other side of the aisle, Mr. Hegseth, unlike Under Secretary Kahl, you have a lot of experience with our military. Do you believe the military is a systemically racist organization and, if confirmed, will you commit to defend, not denigrate our troops?”
Hegseth said he, too was offended by those comments of the Pentagon’s undersecretary, “because anyone who’s been on active duty, in the National Guard, man or woman in units, understands that is fundamentally false.”
Sullivan said that three studies done by the military proved that statement that the military is racist to be fundamentally false.
Hegseth responded, “Senator, they knew it. Anyone who’d been in a unit knew it. One could argue that, if not the least, one of the least racist institutions in our country is the United States military. Being a racist in our military has not been tolerated for a very long time.”
Sullivan then tuned to the issue of the Navy focusing on climate change rather than ship building.
“Last year, at a hearing before this committee, I called on the Biden Secretary of the Navy to resign because he’s failing in his ability to build ships. We are being completely out-built in terms of ships by the Chinese. Yet, this Secretary of the Navy has been focused on climate change, not building ships and lethality. Mr. Hegseth, if your Secretary of the Navy ends up focusing on climate change more than shipbuilding and lethality, will you commit to me to fire him?” Sullivan asked.
Hegseth replied, “My Secretary of the Navy, should I be confirmed, will not be focused on climate change in the Navy, just like the Secretary of the Air Force won’t be focused on LG-powered fighter jets, or the Secretary of the Army will not be focused on electric powered tanks. We’re going to be focused on lethality, defeating our enemies.”
Sullivan also asked Hegseth about transgender surgeries for active duty troops.
“If confirmed and you issue an order saying we are going to rip the Biden woke yoke off the neck of our military and focus on lethality and warfighting, how do you think the troops will react?” Sullivan asked Hegseth, who replied, “Senator, I know the troops will rejoice. They will love it. And we’ve already seen it in recruiting numbers. There’s already been a surge since President Trump won the election of recruiting.”
Recruiting is up 25% over last year since Donald Trump was elected president.
Sullivan shows some balls! About time, considering some of Biden’s cabinet choices who he and the Kow confirmed.
amen
Sometimes Dan makes me worry that he forgets himself & where he came from & then he gives me hope when he comes through like this! I believe it would be relevant to discuss domestic violence IF it was real, otherwise pulling unfounded accusations out of thin air is just irresponsible & disgusting. I’m so tired of it. People who all but worship the Clintons have the audacity to want to talk about fidelity in marriage? Oy vey! Thank you, Dan! I love feeling like we’ve at least got 2/3 of our CODEL actually representing their constituency!
Since Judge Bork and Thomas, (D)ems make these hearings personal and ugly. They reveal more about the lack of character of inquisitors than the nominees. There is no depth to which they won’t stoop to prevent a conservative nominee from getting the job. Here’s hoping Hegseth gets the job and we get back to business and ditch wokeness in the military.
The liberals are falling on their own swords one after another.
Pete Hegseth’s FBI background check is … “Unremarkable!”
Unremarkable for male of the species
Is Tim Kaine related to Brett Kavinaugh’s accuser or did Hillary write his marching orders for the hearing?
Pathetic enough to be in line with Hillary’s style of lies.
Tim Kaine is not worthy of his senate seat.
Unfortunately, the Virginian’s just put him back in there for another six years.
“They said he isn’t qualified, can’t manage money, and accused him of sexual assault and excessive drinking.” Sounds like the Democrats have mistaken Hegseth for a Democrat.
Sounds like Teddy Kennedy….
We don’t have a government anymore. We have two sides two teams fighting each other constantly at the taxpayers expense. The outdo each other to see who can spend more money who can make the most ridiculous laws and who can take more freedoms away from Americans. We need a total reset a redo or something because it doesn’t look like no matter who’s in charge it’s gonna get any better
I wouldn’t mind seeing Pete come to Alaska and flex some muscle! 😉
Seriously, though, those Democrats are just digging themselves deeper into their rabbit holes when they think their only job is to whine at someone they should be legitimately questioning. People are sick of their BS showmanship.
Great reporting that shows both sides of an issue.
(“Reporting” yes, journalism, no)
I’m happy to work with the facts to support drawing my own opinions. I’m also happy enough with Suzanne’s to continue supporting MRAK. If I wanted to read Journo opinion pieces, there are plenty of other places to go.
I’m sure there was some pre-coordination between Hegseth and Sullivan. That’s a typical Democrat tactic. But Tim Kaine? Give me a break. We just got rid of Tim Waltz. These Democrats are raised from the dead for a brief period, then they return to being……
dead.
Just imagine, we could have had the two deranged Tims in office. Kaine under Hillary Clinton, and, Waltz under Kamala Harris. But smart America rejected all four of them. The two screaming, radical women and their white, slave-men stooges named Tim, both who neither really amount to being men, and both under psychological therapy for TDS. All products of DEI and radical feminism.
Liz Warren was even worse than Tim Kaine. She was unhinged; her natural state, I suppose.
I think Kaine is confusing Hegseth with Able.
Wouldn’t it be a nice change of pace if they actually asked pertinent questions?
How can the Senate Armed Services Committee have a piece of lying garbage like Dick Blumenthal anywhere near the committee? The communist’s acted like a bunch of toddlers banging their spoons on the high chair tray.
YIKES! Duckworth asks Hegseth to name a country that’s in ASEAN. He names three — none of which are in ASEAN.
“I suggest you do a little homework,” she says.
Would love to watch Pete invite Tim Kaine
out behind the woodshed after his trash talk.
The difference between the democrats and most Republicans in the senate is massive. Senator Sullivan did his constitutional duty and ask questions pertaining to the job. The democrats are on attack and lie mode. Thank you Col. Sullivan, SEMPER FI
It was unavoidable to watch the hearing and not be reminded that affirmative action replaced merit-based promotion in the US Armed Forces beginning in 1947, and that was discussed. What I didn’t hear mentioned directly is that the United States has not won a war since then but everyone attending knew that is the case, and in a tangential way that fact was more or less acknowledged. It was a good hearing and a moment of honesty in the US Congress.
The contrast between Senator Sullivan and the previous Senator Hirono (D-HI) was striking.
Hirono slurred her words and refused to let Hegseth answer, trying to place her own words in his mouth. Reminded me of trying to reason with a drunk woman at 3am. Sullivan asked clear, relevant questions, listened to the answers, and promoted Alaska as essential to Pacific and Arctic defense.
Hirono could have stressed similar defense related themes for Hawaii. Instead, she wasted everyone’s time with her unhinged ranting.
Hegseth would be better suited for an Undersecretary position. He simply does not have the qualifications to manage 300,000 people and a $900 Million budget
Great job Senator Sullivan. I really loved Senator Mullins questioning the Democrats about being drunk during late night voting. Too bad we didn’t get to see all the Democrats there and their responses. How is our RINO going to vote? I for one am going to be watching her voting. Especially for the 2026 election. We got Mary voted out.
The responses on the liberal media platforms and “news” sources is terrifying. They honestly believe that Mr. Hegseth is a drunkard and a woman beater.. with zero evidence.
Liberals don’t even bother questioning the narrative.
Hegseth “ the Jewish people deserve a homeland”. But White America can pay for it lol. He would never say “White people deserve a homeland”. Kind of shows who runs America, pathetic. Expect more wars for Israel while America imports more third world cheap labor and watches our cities decay further.
It doesn’t matter to the ruling class that White founding stock Americans will be a minority in America, they have no ethnic loyalty, plenty for a foreign race and state though. Judas, they took the silver.
Democrat hysteria and republican impotence continues. The transition to Trump’s command (and responsibility) cannot come soon enough.
As Hegseth doesn’t have a DUI, and he’s avoided IED, he’s qualified to run the DOD, and his intern should likely hold off removing that IUD.
I caught of bit of the hearing this morning. It was terrible. I didn’t look to see who, but it was some lady going off on an unhinged tirade. She was literally screaming, and every other word was women or LGBTQ. Nothing about the military or defense. With the situation in CA right now you would think they’d learn why DEI and box checking is such a failure.