Trump’s defense secretary pick Pete Hegseth faces ‘critical day’ as president-elect mulls other options: Live
President-elect’s pick for defense secretary dogged by allegations of sexual assault, drunkenness, Islamophobia and mismanagement of a non-profit
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Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense, former Fox News weekend anchor Pete Hegseth, continues to be dogged by allegations about his past, potentially making his confirmation less likely and splitting right-wing media on his prospects as his candidacy faces an “absolutely critical day” on Wednesday.
Hegseth is due to take questions from the House Republican Study Committee today as well as appearing on Fox for an interview.
Hegseth’s mother Penelope is also due to appear on the channel, having previously criticized her son’s behavior towards women in a letter, as the Trump transition team reportedly considers alternatives to lead the Pentagon, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
On Tuesday, Trump’s pick to serve as administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Sheriff Chad Chronister, withdrew from consideration, posting on X that he would be declining the “honor of a lifetime” after “the gravity of this very important responsibility set in”.
The president-elect’s choice for FBI director, Kash Patel, was also revealed to have been targeted by Iranian hackers while Trump himself pushed for the dismissal of the hush money case against him citing Joe Biden’s decision to pardon his son Hunter Biden.
Nato chief warns Trump not to push Ukraine deal that would see Putin ‘high-fiving’ Iran
Trump’s DEA nominee backs out after Covid and immigration criticisms
Trump’s conquest: President-elect posts bizarre AI pic of himself with Canadian flag (on a Swiss mountain)
Judge weighs whether to order Fani Willis to comply with lawmakers' subpoenas over Trump case
Trump transition agrees to let FBI vet nominees
Despite the Trump transition announcement that it had signed a memorandum of understanding with the Justice Department that will permit names of incoming administration personnel to undergo background investigations by FBI agents and receive interim security clearances, it’s unclear to what extent President-elect Donald Trump intends on relying on the nation’s preeminent law enforcement agency to vet his appointees.
The move appears to be aimed at blunting criticism from senators of both parties who expect to see FBI background check reports on cabinet nominees before they hold confirmation hearings but the transition statement does not say whether Trump will move forward with plans discussed among transition officials to bypass the FBI entirely for some administration personnel and instead have Trump grant them clearances by executive fiat upon taking office next month.
ICYMI: Hegseth accused of chanting ‘kill all Muslims’ on a drunken night out
Pete Hegseth, the former Fox News host who is currently President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Defense, once drunkenly shouted “kill all Muslims!” in the middle of a bar while serving as the president of a veterans’ group, The New Yorker reports.
This is just one of many jaw-dropping allegations included in Jane Mayer’s deep-dive investigation into Hegseth’s unprofessional and lewd behavior while leading two separate non-profit advocacy organizations, which includes claims of constant intoxication, financial mismanagement and inappropriate sexual conduct that prompted both groups to eventually boot him from leadership.
Justin Barangoa reports.
Pete Hegseth accused of chanting 'kill all Muslims' on a drunken night out
Besides Hegseth drunkenly yelling the hateful Islamophobic chant, a whistelblower report alleged that he had to be stopped from storming a dancers’ stage at a Louisiana strip club.
Trump’s conquest: President-elect posts bizarre AI pic of himself with Canadian flag (on a Swiss mountain)
Trump posts bizarre AI pic of himself with a Canadian flag (on a Swiss mountain)
The post appeared to be a somewhat confusing reference to a joke the President-elect made with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau last week
The clock is ticking... who else could Biden pardon?
In the final stretch of his presidency, President Joe Biden issued a pardon to his son Hunter Biden, who was convicted on federal gun charges.
But Sunday’s pardon has sparked controversy. Biden repeatedly insisted he would not grant clemency to Hunter, prompting members of Congress and advocates to criticize the president’s U-turn, accusing him of putting his family before the country or pointing to his clemency record.
Hunter marks the 26th person that the president has pardoned since he entered the White House in 2021, records show.
A host of Congress members have urged Biden to pardon certain groups and people in his last 50 days in office.
The White House Press has said more pardons can be expected before Inauguration Day.
Who else could Biden pardon?
Sen. Ed Markey suggested Biden issue ‘preemptive pardons’ to individuals that Trump could go after
Ohio woman who sparked election disinformation after eating a cat is sentenced
Ohio woman who sparked election disinformation after eating a cat is sentenced
Allexis Ferrell, 27, was sentenced to twelve months behind bars on after pleading guilty to cruelty to companion animals
Report: Trump chose Kash Patel for FBI after his first choice flunked the interview
Donald Trump’s controversial decision to have Kash Patel to head up the FBIwas not his first choice, according to a new report.
The MAGA loyalist was being considered as deputy director of the bureau, an appointment that may have raised fewer eyebrows, with Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey a frontrunner for the top job.
However, a source in the Trump transition team told Axios that Bailey’s interview at Mar-a-Lago did not go well and that he “looked the part” but “just didn’t have the presence in the room.”
Mike Bedigan reports.
Trump chose Kash Patel for FBI after his first choice flunked the interview: report
Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey was reportedly a frontrunner for the top job, with Patel being considered as a contender for deputy director
Trump’s DEA nominee backs out after Covid and immigration criticisms
Trump’s DEA nominee backs out after Covid and immigration criticisms
Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister is second Trump nominee to withdraw from consideration, after Matt Gaetz
What is covered by Hunter Biden’s pardon?
With less than 50 days left in the White House, President Joe Biden has taken a controversial step he had previously vowed he wouldn’t take: pardoning his son Hunter Biden.
On Sunday night, Biden announced he had granted his son clemency for “offenses against the United States which he has committed or may have committed or taken part in during the period from January 1, 2014 through December 1, 2024.”
Presidents can grant clemency, including both pardons (forgiving federal criminal offenses) and commutations (reducing penalties) for federal convictions. Presidents cannot pardon those convicted of state crimes.
In June, Hunter, 54, was convicted of three federal gun charges related to his purchase of a firearm in 2018. Three months later, he pleaded guilty to nine federal tax charges in September.
So what does the president’s pardon cover?
What does Hunter Biden’s pardon cover?
President pardoned his son just weeks before his sentencings in two criminal cases
‘2,000 Mules’: Dinesh D’Souza apologizes for false claims in election conspiracy theory documentary
Far-right provocateur and pardoned felon Dinesh D’Souza has issued an apology over false accusations he made in his 2022 election conspiracy theory movie 2000 Mules, acknowledging that his claims about illegal “ballot trafficking” during the 2020 presidential election were misleading and inaccurate.
In a lengthy statement posted to his website on Sunday, D’Souza said that his movie — which asserts that “mules” were paid to fraudulently deposit harvested ballots in swing states — had relied on “cell phone geolocation data” provided by conservative non-profit group True the Vote. That data, D’Souza noted, had turned out to be false.
Justin Barangoa reports.
Pardoned felon Dinesh D'Souza apologizes for election conspiracy movie
Months before the MAGA filmmaker apologized to a Georgia voter for wrongly accusing him of election fraud, his widely debunked film and book was pulled by the publisher as part of a defamation lawsuit settlement.
Kash Patel’s MAGA merch ventures — from kids books to pills that will reverse Covid vaccine
Kash Patel, Donald Trump’s pick to lead the FBI, has made a living hawking products to MAGA loyalists from “King Donald” children’s books to supplements claiming to reverse the Covid-19 vaccine.
Patel, a Trump ultra-loyalist who served as chief of staff to the acting Secretary of Defense Christopher Miller in Trump’s first administration, was tapped for the position on Saturday – despite being a vocal critic of the bureau, previously describing it as the so-called “deep state.”
Following his exit from Trump’s first administration, the right-wing operative has benefited from his close association with the president-elect.
In particular, Patel has flogged a suite of products aimed at the MAGA crowd, bringing in hundreds of thousands of dollars from Trump-aligned businesses.
Here’s a look at his MAGA merchandise ventures:
Kash Patel’s King Donald books and other MAGA merch ventures
Trump’s FBI director pick has authored a trilogy of children’s books where the president-elect takes on villains named ‘Hillary Queenton’ and ‘Sleepy Joe’
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