Trump transition live: Pete Hegseth says no alcohol if confirmed after meeting with Republican lawmakers
President-elect’s pick for defense secretary dogged by allegations of sexual assault, drunkenness, Islamophobia and mismanagement of a non-profit, as Ron DeSantis floated as possible alternative
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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. On Wednesday his candidacy faced an “absolutely critical day.”
Hegseth took questions from the House Republican Study Committee, met with senators, and promised incoming Senate Armed Services Chair Roger Wicker that if confirmed he wouldn’t drink.
His mother Penelope appeared on his former network earlier to defend him, having previously criticized her son’s behavior towards women in a letter.
The Trump transition team is reportedly considering alternatives to lead the Pentagon — reportedly including Senator Joni Ernst, and surprisingly, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.
Meanwhile, Trump’s pick to serve as administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Sheriff Chad Chronister withdrew from consideration, although Trump has since said he pulled the nomination over comments he made to pastors.
In another flurry of appointments, the president-elect asked his former trade adviser Peter Navarro to return in a similar role for his new administration. Trump also picked a NASA administrator, a secretary of the army, and a chair of the SEC.
Trump’s conquest: President-elect posts bizarre AI pic of himself with Canadian flag (on a Swiss mountain)
Trump’s DEA nominee backs out after Covid and immigration criticisms
Judge weighs whether to order Fani Willis to comply with lawmakers' subpoenas over Trump case
Nato chief warns Trump not to push Ukraine deal that would see Putin ‘high-fiving’ Iran
‘Architect’ of 2020 fake electors scheme wants to invalidate guilty plea in Georgia
Kenneth Chesebro, the so-called architect of the fake elector scheme to try and throw the 2020 election to Donald Trump, has moved to invalidate his guilty plea in the sprawling Fulton County, Georgia, racketeering case in which he was named as one of the co-conspirators alongside the now president-elect.
After pleading guilty, Chesebro began cooperating with investigators in other key battleground states where the scheme was also operative.
Here’s our reporting on his guilty plea and what it meant for the case:
Kenneth Chesebro pleads guilty in Georgia election subversion case
The architect of the fake elector scheme is the third defendant to plead guilty in election interference case
AOC calls for Biden to commute federal death sentences after Hunter Biden pardon
The New York Democrat and outspoken progressive told The Independent that commuting federal death sentences is more than just about the individual pardon, which many Democrats have loudly criticized.
Specifically, she cited Native American activist Leonard Peltier, who is serving a life sentence for killing two FBI agents, though advocates say he was wrongly convicted.
Eric Garcia has more.
AOC calls for Biden to commute federal death sentences after Hunter Biden pardon
AOC accuses the Biden administration of issuing ‘a record-low number’ of pardons — and hopes Biden pardoning his son isn’t the end of them
Watch: Hegseth says he spoke to Trump this morning ‘he said keep going, keep fighting'
Nikole Killion of CBS News caught up with Pete Hegseth at the Capitol this morning as he arrived for meetings with senators.
“I spoke to the president-elect this morning. He said keep going keep fighting. I’m behind you all the way.”
Hegseth says he will ‘never back down’ and retweets messages of support
Facing a crucial moment in his nomination to be Donald Trump’s secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth is attempting to rally his supporters in the face of allegations regarding alcohol abuse, sexual assault, and mismanagement that his detractors say make him wholly unqualified for the role.
The former Fox News host posted a defiant tweet this morning, saying: “I’m doing this for the warfighters, not the warmongers.”
“The Left is afraid of disrupters and change agents. They are afraid of Donald Trump—and me. So they smear w/ fake, anonymous sources & BS stories. They don’t want truth,” he continued.
“Our warriors never back down, & neither will I.”
He also posted messages of support from Charlie Kirk, actor Dean Cain, Senator Rick Scott, and Vice President-elect JD Vance.
Trump’s controversial FBI pick Kash Patel targeted in Iranian cyberattack
Here’s James Liddell with the latest on the alleged hacking of Kash Patel by Tehran.
Trump’s controversial FBI pick Kash Patel targeted in Iranian cyberattack
It marks the latest in a string of cyberattacks allegedly targeting those in Trump’s inner circle
Judge lashes out over Hunter Biden pardon
The judge overseeing Hunter Biden’s tax case is not thrilled with the president’s pardoning his son and has accused him of misrepresenting the case, saying his public statement “stands in tension with the case record”.
Judge Marc Scarsi issued a strong rebuke in response to the president’s announcement over the Thanksgiving weekend, saying that “in the president’s estimation, this legion of federal civil servants, the undersigned included, are unreasonable people” and declared “a press release is not a pardon.”
Tucker Carlson returns to Moscow to interview another Russian leader
The conservative media personality has returned to Russia to interview Vladimir Putin’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov.
The former Fox News primetime host and Donald Trump ally made waves nine months ago when he unexpectedly appeared in Moscow to interview Putin himself, only to be widely derided for his credulous coverage of the country and failure to confront the Kremlin leader over his actions in Ukraine.
Even the Russian president mocked Carlson, pointing out his lack of “sharp” questions and teasing him about his failed attempt to join the CIA earlier in his career.
On Tuesday, Carlson posted a video on X from Red Square, where he explained his latest visit.
Here’s more.
Tucker Carlson returns to Moscow to interview another Russian leader
Conservative media personality is back in Russia to quiz Vladimir Putin’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov
Penelope Hegseth defends son on Fox and Friends
The mother of Trump’s nominee for defense secretary, who previously rebuked him over his treatment of women, is on Fox’s morning show right now to defend her boy.
Here’s what she’s had to tell Steve Doocy so far:
Justin Baragona has more.
Pete Hegseth’s mom trashes media as she defends her ‘changed’ son on Fox & Friends
Addressing the 2018 email she sent her son blasting him for mistreating women over the years, Pete Hegseth’s mother called the media “despicable” over the way it had treated him.
Trump in New York on Thursday to receive ‘Fox Patriot of Year’ award
Here’s an interesting little sidenote to the president-elect’s latest Truth Social announcement.
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