Hegseth, an abuser?
As President-elect Donald Trump's pick for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth has been at the center of controversy in recent weeks. The veteran of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars has faced scrutiny over his treatment of women and his marriage history, sparking concerns about his character and leadership.
At the heart of the issue is a 2018 email from Hegseth's mother, Penelope, to her son. In the email, she accuses him of mistreating women for years, citing his "dishonesty, sleeping around, betrayal, debasing, belittling" behavior. She writes that he has displayed a lack of character and that it pains her to say so.
However, in a phone interview with The New York Times, Penelope Hegseth backtracked on her statements, defending her son and disavowing the sentiments expressed in the email. She claimed that she had sent the initial email "in anger, with emotion" during a difficult time in her son's life, and that it was not reflective of his true character.
The controversy surrounding Hegseth's treatment of women has been fueled by reports of infidelity and a rape complaint filed against him in 2017. According to an article published in The Times, Hegseth secretly paid the complainant a settlement after the incident, which he claims was a consensual encounter gone wrong.
In addition to the allegations against him, Hegseth's marriage history has also come under scrutiny. He was married to his high school sweetheart, Meredith Schwarz, from 2004 until their divorce in 2009. The court judgment cited infidelity as the reason for the breakdown of the marriage.
Hegseth then married Samantha, a co-worker at Vets for Freedom, within five years of his first divorce. However, he fathered a child with Jennifer Rauchet, an executive producer at Fox News, who later gave birth to their daughter in 2017. Hegseth and Rauchet eventually got married in 2019.
The acrimonious divorce from Samantha took 10 months to finalize, during which time the couple fought over the care of their children. A parenting consultant was appointed to help negotiate disputes over dividing time with the children.
Despite his efforts to distance himself from the controversy, Hegseth's mother has come forward as a vocal critic of his behavior. In her email, she wrote that it was "time for someone" to stand up to his abusive behavior and call it out, especially against women.
As Senate confirmation hearings approach, questions about Hegseth's treatment of women are likely to be at the forefront of the debate. Senator Joni Ernst, a Republican from Iowa who has spoken publicly about her own experience with sexual harassment in the military, has stated that she wants to ensure that any allegations against Hegseth are properly vetted.
source: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/11/29/us/politics/pete-hegseth-mother-email.html?unlocked_article_code=1.d04.hkIK.QnXcVaptGbvi&smid=url-share