President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to be Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, is facing a new report detailing allegations of alcohol abuse, sexual impropriety, and mismanagement while he was running two veterans’ nonprofit groups.
The report, published by The New Yorker, cites a previously undisclosed whistleblower complaint written in 2015, which alleges that Hegseth was drunk on repeated occasions while acting as president of the Concerned Veterans for America (CVA). The report also claims that Hegseth and other members of his management team sexually pursued female staffers, whom they divided into two groups – the “party girls” and the “not party girls.”
Hegseth was forced to step down as president of CVA in 2016 due to concerns about his mismanagement and abuse of alcohol on the job. The report also claims that another group he led, Vets for Freedom, under his leadership “soon ran up enormous debt” and was unable to pay its creditors.
Hegseth’s attorney, Timothy Parlatore, has declined to comment on the allegations, saying that they are “outlandish claims laundered through The New Yorker by a petty and jealous disgruntled former associate of Mr. Hegseth’s.”
The allegations are the latest in a series of controversies surrounding Hegseth’s nomination. He was previously investigated by police for an alleged sexual assault of a woman in 2017, and he has been criticized for his handling of the situation.
Hegseth has denied any wrongdoing and has maintained that he was “completely cleared” of any wrongdoing in the 2017 incident. However, the allegations have raised questions about his fitness to serve as Secretary of Defense.
The New Yorker’s report is the latest in a series of articles and reports that have raised concerns about Hegseth’s character and qualifications. The report has sparked a heated debate about Hegseth’s nomination and has raised questions about the vetting process used by the Trump transition team.