‘He’s given me his side of the story. It makes sense to me. I believe him,’ Sen. Lindsey Graham said.
A top Republican senator said on Dec. 15 that he believes Pete Hegesth, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for defense secretary, will be confirmed unless people who have made accusations against Hegseth without publicly disclosing their names come forward.
“I’m in a good place with Pete, unless something I don’t know about comes out,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
In 2017, a woman told police in California that Hegseth sexually assaulted her, but no charges were brought because prosecutors said the allegations could not be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Other anonymous accusers have alleged that Hegseth had a drinking problem and made inappropriate remarks.
“All of these are anonymous allegations. He’s given me his side of the story. It makes sense to me. I believe him,” Graham said on NBC. “Unless somebody is willing to come forward, I think he’s going to get through.”
Graham, the ranking member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, referenced the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh, which saw multiple women allege that the justice assaulted women.
“Five people accused Justice Kavanaugh