WASHINGTON — The Republican-controlled Senate on Friday night confirmed Pete Hegseth as defense secretary by the narrowest of margins, with Vice President JD Vance casting a tie-breaking vote and delivering a victory for President Donald Trump.
The initial vote was 50-50, with three Republicans — Sens. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, and Susan Collins of Maine — joining all 47 Democrats in voting no. Vance then cast the 51st vote, putting Hegseth over the top and ending weeks of uncertainty over the fate of Trump’s controversial pick to lead the Pentagon.
In 2017, then-Vice President Mike Pence broke a 50-50 tie to confirm Betsy DeVos as Education secretary in Trump’s first term.
“Congratulations to Pete Hegseth. He will make a great Secretary of Defense!” Trump posted on Truth Social after the vote.
Sen. McConnell’s vote was a stunning rebuke of Hegseth and Trump, whom the former Senate Republican leader has clashed with repeatedly over the years.
“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 staggering consequences for the security of the American people and our global interests,” McConnell said in a scathing statement that suggested Hegseth had not shown he is up for the job.
“Mr. Hegseth has failed, as yet, to demonstrate that he will pass this test,” McConnell’s statement continued. “But as he assumes office, the consequences of failure are as high as they have ever been.”
But McConnell’s opposition wasn’t enough to sink Hegseth.
Shortly after the vote began, Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., who in recent days was still seeking answers from Hegseth, announced on X that he would vote in favor of him.
“Once Pete Hegseth’s nomination was sent to the floor by my colleagues on the Senate Armed Services Committee, I conducted my own due diligence, including asking tough questions of Pete and I appreciated his candor and openness in answering them,” Tillis said in his statement.
“Pete has a unique perspective as a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and is unquestionably passionate about modernizing our military and supporting the brave patriots like himself who serve our nation,” he added.
Tillis told reporters that he met with Hegseth for “nearly two hours” Friday and that ultimately his answers to his questions made him feel “comfortable” in supporting his nomination.
In a rare move, Hegseth, a former Fox News anchor and Army combat veteran, was on hand for the vote, sitting just off the Senate floor with his wife, parents, and children. He showed his family the rotunda and could be overheard telling them, “This was where President Trump was inaugurated.”
Friday’s vote came one day after Hegseth’s nomination narrowly cleared a key procedural hurdle 51-49, with Collins and Murkowski voting with all Democrats to block him. Speaking to reporters Friday, Collins said she had informed Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., of her opposition to Hegseth and had not personally heard from Trump. She said she stood by her decision.
“Two years from now, we’ll look back and say, ‘That was a dark day in the Senate’s history,'” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.
After the vote, Democrats expressed disgust at the outcome. “Unfortunately, my Republican colleagues are really pretty spineless,” Blumenthal said. “This vote may well haunt them.”
