'It is clear Mr. Hegseth is totally inappropriate as a nominee for secretary of defense,' says CAIR, America's largest Muslim advocacy group
US President-elect Donald Trump's pick to lead the Department of Defense is accused of chanting "Kill all Muslims" in a drunken rage at a Veterans group event in 2015, in addition to allegations of sexual impropriety and personal misconduct during a separate incident in 2017, according to the New Yorker magazine.
According to the report, Pete Hegseth was on a work trip in the state of Ohio on May 29, 2015 for the group Concerned Veterans for America when he allegedly got drunk at the hotel bar and yelled multiple times, "Kill all Muslims!"
"We're not going to comment on outlandish claims laundered through The New Yorker by a petty and jealous disgruntled former associate of Mr. Hegseth's," said his attorney Tim Parlatore in response to the New Yorker's allegations. "Get back to us when you try your first attempt at actual journalism."
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), America's largest Muslim advocacy group, is not taking the accusations against Hegseth lightly, calling for Congress to reject his nomination.
"Based on his current views and past actions, it is clear Mr. Hegseth is totally inappropriate as a nominee for secretary of defense," said CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad in a statement. "Anyone who -- even in a drunken state -- would call for the slaughter of all members of a faith has disqualified himself from holding an important position that would inevitably interact with representatives of Muslim-majority nations."
In addition to Hegseth's alleged Islamophobic remarks, the New Yorker detailed that Hegseth was also accused of personal misconduct, including the revelation that he had secretly paid a financial settlement to a woman who accused him of raping her in 2017.
Despite these revelations, Trump is standing by his choice for Secretary of Defense.
"President Trump is nominating high-caliber and extremely qualified candidates to serve in his administration," Trump communications director Steven Cheung said in a statement, noting that the former Fox News anchor has not been charged with any crime.
Beyond the personal misconduct allegations, the New Yorker presented information about Hegseth's previous record which the publication said raises additional decisions about his suitability to run the world's largest and most powerful military force. A paper trail of documents showed that Hegseth was forced to step down by the two veteran nonprofit advocacy groups he ran -- Veterans for Freedom and Concerned Veterans for America -- due to multiple allegations, including financial mismanagement, sexual impropriety and personal misconduct.
Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, described the report of Hegseth's drinking as alarming and disqualifying, telling the New Yorker that the committee will carefully review Hegseth's nomination.
"Much as we might be sympathetic to people with continuing alcohol problems, they shouldn't be at the top of our national-security structure," said Blumenthal. "It's dangerous. The Secretary of Defense is involved in every issue of national security. He's involved in the use of nuclear weapons. He's the one who approves sending troops into combat. He approves drone strikes that may involve civilian casualties. Literally life-and-death issues are in the hands of the Secretary of Defense, and entrusting these kinds of issues to someone who might be incapacitated for any reason is a risk we cannot take."
Blumenthal referred to a similar situation in 1989 during the George H.W. Bush administration when Sen. John Tower, a Republican from Texas, was voted down by the Senate due to concerns about his drinking and womanizing.
"John Tower went down for these same kinds of issues," said Blumenthal. "I don't think it's a partisan issue."
Confirmation hearings for Trump's Cabinet picks are expected to begin during the 119th Congressional session which stars on Jan. 3, 2025. A date for Hegseth's hearing has not yet been announced.
