Pete Hegseth faces Senate confirmation for Defense Secretary: What to know

WASHINGTON - President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, faced his Senate confirmation hearings Tuesday. The hearing was held with senators questioning whether the former combat veteran and TV news show host is fit to lead the U.S. military.

The former "Fox & Friends" weekend host and Army National Guard combat veteran went before the Senate Armed Services Committee after weeks of meetings during which some senators have questioned his fitness for the role amid allegations of excessive drinking and sexual misconduct. The Pentagon chief’s authority over the U.S. military is second only to that of the president’s.

"It’s time to give someone with dust on his boots the helm. A change agent," Hegseth will tell senators in prepared remarks from his opening statement obtained by The Associated Press.

RELATED: Trump nominates FOX News host, Army veteran Pete Hegseth for defense secretary

Hegseth, 44, has developed a close rapport with Trump, who also reportedly considered him for a post in his first administration. Hegseth has lobbied Trump to release service members accused of war crimes.

What we know:

Hegseth said he will be a "change agent" and a "warrior" for the department as Republicans demand new and strong leadership in the Pentagon. Democrats said Hegseth’s lack of experience, his past comments about women and Black troops and allegations of excessive drinking and sexual misconduct, make him unfit to serve.

RELATED: How does Pete Hegseth's experience compare to previous defense secretaries?

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., called Hegseth’s nomination to lead the Defense Department "unconventional" but compared him to Trump, and said that may just be what makes him an "excellent choice."

Rhode Island Sen. Jack Reed, the top Democrat on the Senate Armed Services Committee, said Hegseth lacks "the character and the competence" to lead the Pentagon. Reed he has voted to confirm the nine previous Defense secretaries, including in Trump’s first term, but will not support Hegseth.

His confirmation would be an "an insult to the men and women who have sworn to uphold their own apolitical duty to the Constitution," Reed said.

Hegseth did not directly address the allegations of sexual misconduct and aggressively pushed back on Democrats who asked questions about it, calling it a "coordinated smear campaign."

"I’m not a perfect person but redemption is real," Hegseth said.

In 2017, a woman told police that Hegseth sexually assaulted her, according to a detailed investigative report recently made public. Hegseth has denied any wrongdoing and told police at the time that the encounter at a Republican women’s event in California was consensual. He was not charged, but paid the woman a confidential settlement to head off a potential lawsuit.

What we don't know:

Though there is strong Republican support for Hegseth, it's still not clear if Hegseth will be confirmed by the full Senate. 

What they're saying:

Republicans have praised Hegseth's lack of a high-level leadership role. "It’s time to give someone with dust on his boots the helm," he said.

Hegseth would not be the first defense secretary to have served in combat — far from it. An array of previous secretaries have had combat service, dodging bombs and leading troops into the fight, including current Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who was a leader in the initial invasion into Iraq.

The other side:

New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat, told Hegseth that his quotes about women are "terrible" and harmful to morale.

Hegseth made overtures to women and Black troops, an attempt to blunt some of the criticism of his previous comments that women should "straight up" not serve in combat and his suggestions that some Black troops may not be qualified.

"It would be the privilege of a lifetime, if confirmed, to be the secretary of defense for all men and women in uniform," Hegseth said.

At the same time, he implied that the Pentagon has lowered standards for women to fight without giving examples of those standards. "The standards need to be the same and they need to be high," Hegseth said, adding that where those standards have been eroded to meet diversity quotas, that should be under review.

"You will have to change how you see women to do this job," she said.

What's next:

The Senate Armed Services Committee will then vote on whether to recommend Hegseth to the full Senate. The full Senate would then debate and then a majority of votes would be needed to confirm Hegseth to the position. If he's confirmed, Hegseth would then be sworn in. 

Who is Pete Hegseth?

Dig deeper:

After graduating from Princeton University in 2003, Hegseth was commissioned as an infantry officer in the Army National Guard, serving overseas in Afghanistan and Iraq as well as at Guantánamo Bay.

He was formerly head of the Concerned Veterans for America, a group backed by conservative billionaires Charles and David Koch, and also unsuccessfully ran for the Senate in Minnesota in 2012. According to his Fox News bio, he has a master’s degree in public policy from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.

When are the confirmation hearings?

Big picture view:

The confirmation hearings for Trump's cabinet picks are expected to continue after Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20. 

How do confirmation hearings work?

Once Trump nominates his picks for various positions, they are then presented to the appropriate Senate committee. The committee would then vote to recommend a candidate to the full Senate. The full Senate will debate. Trump's picks will either be confirmed or rejected by a simple majority. If they are approved, they are then sworn-in. 

Republicans currently hold 53 seats in the Senate, which could suggest many of Trump's picks will be confirmed without issue. 

Editor's note: This version of the story has been updated to reflect that Doug Collins and Doug Burgum's hearings, previously scheduled for Tuesday, have been delayed.

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