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In a letter to Hegseth sent Monday, the Massachusetts Democrat
asked the former Fox News host and Army veteran to respond no
later than Friday to questions on allegations of past drinking,
sexual assault and mismanagement of veterans organization
finances — all of which he denies. She also wants to know about
statements he's made concerning minorities, women and LGBTQ
people serving in the military.
Hegseth has the support of some veterans groups that believe the
military has overemphasized diversity at the cost of troop
readiness. A group of former Navy SEALs is planning a rally in
support of Hegseth in Washington next week.
“One of the biggest flaws in current leadership in the military
and in the Pentagon is when you become more focused on things
that don’t matter,” said Bill Brown, a former SEAL who is
organizing Tuesday’s rally. “The military is not a social
justice project.”
Hegseth's supporters have stressed that many of the questions
about his past behavior arose from reports based on anonymous
sources. But some relate to things he's said in interviews or
written in his books.
In “War on Warriors,” Hegseth wrote that Gen. CQ Brown's
promotion to chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff meant that
“with the Pentagon now run by, and fully staffed by, so-called
‘leaders’ like CQ Brown, we can assume that 17 percent of all
black officers in the Air Force are simply promoted because of
how they look — and not how they lead.”
Hegseth also has openly criticized the role of women in combat,
although in meetings with senators, he seemed to walk back some
of those views.
Warren questioned if Hegseth would be able to lead, saying she
was “deeply concerned by the many ways in which your past
behavior and rhetoric indicates that you are unfit to lead the
Department of Defense.”
Brian Hughes, a spokesman for the Trump transition team, said
Warren's letter “is exactly what the American voters rejected on
November 5. Instead of focusing on ‘woke’ policies that have
weakened our national defense, the voters gave a mandate to
rebuild our military, and that’s exactly what a reform-minded
Secretary of Defense like Pete Hegseth will do.”
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