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Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., was one of three Republicans who voted against Pete Hegseth, who was recently confirmed as defense secretary, on Friday. Trump administration.
Other Republican “no” votes came from moderates Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Susan Collins, R-Maine, forcing Vice President JD Vance to break a 50-50 tie to confirm President Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Pentagon.
“The most important cabinet official in any Administration is the Secretary of Defense,” McConnell wrote, explaining his opposition to Hegseth. “In the face of the most serious threats to US national security interests since World War II, that position is even more important today.”
“Chief adversaries are working closer together to undermine US interests around the world,” he said. “And America’s military capabilities and industrial defense capability are increasingly inadequate to deter or prevail in major conflicts with China or Russia, especially given the real risk of simultaneous challenges from other adversaries such as Iran or North Korea.”
PETE HEGSETH REITERATES HE WILL LEAD PENTAGON AFTER VP VANCE VOTE FOR EQUALITY
Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., asks a question from a reporter during a press conference at the Senate Republicans’ weekly policy luncheon on Nov. 19, 2024, at the U.S. Capitol in Washington. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
Hegseth, a former Fox News host, faced questions about his infidelity before his confirmation of allegations of sexual assault and heavy drinking, his previous comments against the women he served. combat roles in the military and his leadership skills.
Married three times, Hegseth has admitted to being a “serial cheater” before he became a Christian and married his current wife, Jenny. He originally said he was against women’s wrestling, then before saying that he only held women’s standards in wrestling to be different from men’s. Hegseth has also denied allegations of sexual assault and said he will abstain from alcohol as defense secretary.
McConnell said the “boot dust” regarding Hegseth’s military service “doesn’t even distinguish this candidate from several of his predecessors over the past decade. It’s not a prerequisite for success. Secretaries with combat experience and great time in the trenches have failed the job.”
“The effective management of nearly 3 million military and civilian personnel, an annual budget of nearly $1 trillion, and alliances and partnerships around the world is a daily test with dire consequences for the security of the American people and our global interests,” the senator said. . “Mr. Hegseth has yet to prove that he will pass this test. But as he takes office, the consequences of failure are as great as ever.”
MODERATE REPUBLICAN MURKOWSKI WILL NOT BACK TRUMP PICK HEGSETH FOR DEFENSE SECRETARY
Pete Hegseth testifies during the Senate Armed Services Committee’s confirmation hearing on January 14, 2025, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
McConnell insisted that Hegseth, in his testimony before the Armed Services Committee, “failed to recognize the reality” that the United States “faces a coordinated attack by adversaries bent on disrupting the order that protects America’s security and prosperity.”
“President Trump has rightly asked NATO allies to spend more on our collective defense. But the candidate who would be responsible for leading that effort would not commit to growing America’s defense investment beyond the low bar set by the Biden Administration’s budget requests,” McConnell said.
Likewise, the senator said that Hegseth’s testimony “is not about how Taiwan or the Philippines should be defended against a Chinese attack, nor does the United States think it should.” McConnell said Hegseth had not “articulated a clear strategic vision for dealing with the most pressing long-term threat.” from china.
Pete Hegseth speaks before the Senate Armed Services Committee at the end of his confirmation hearing Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025, at the Capitol in Washington. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
McConnell also said there is a lack of “substantive discussion” about “the realignment of our adversaries with deeper alliance relationships and broader defense industry cooperation.”
“This is, of course, due to change,” McConnell said. “As the 29th Secretary of Defense, Mr. Hegseth will be immediately tested by ongoing conflicts in the Middle East caused by Russian aggression in Europe and Iranian-sponsored terror. He will have to deal with an unfinished appropriations process of the 25th year, without his intervention. – more on the readiness of our forces there is a risk of damage.”
“However, brave young men and women join the military under the understanding that it is a meritocracy,” he added. “This precious trust lasts only as long as legitimate civilian leadership maintains what should be a firewall between service members and politics. The Biden Administration failed in that key role. But restoring the ‘warrior culture’ will not come from trading one set of culture warriors for another.”
