Pete Heget confirmed as Trump’s Defense Minister

Pete Heget, Donald Trump’s candidate for the US Secretary of Defense, was confirmed by the Senate at the end of Friday night after faceding unlawful behavior that almost derailed his confirmation.

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At the time of heget hearing, he faced multiple questions about A statement of sexual assaultWhich he denied, as well as cheating and drinking.

The former fighter veteran and one -time host of Fox News will monitor a department of about three million employees and a budget of $ 849 billion (£ 695 billion).

Four Republicans would have to join the 47th democratic and independent senators who voted against his nomination for his nomination.

McConnell’s surprising vote left the Senate in a dead end 50-50 before Vance arrived to throw the connection.

Explaining his vote, McConnell issued a bruising statement saying that Heget was unprepared to lead a huge department of three million people while managing a huge budget and coordinating with global allies.

The role of the Minister of Defense is “a daily test with stunning effects on the security of the American people,” McConnell said. “Mr. Heget still failed to demonstrate that he would pass this test.”

Confirming Heget, Vance becomes only the second Vice President in the history of the United States to interrupt equality to confirm the candidate for the cabinet. Previous Vice President of Trump, Mike Pence, became the first when he put the decisive vote to confirm Betsy Devos as secretary of education in 2017.

“Military binding, lethality, meritocracy, standards and readiness. That’s all. It’s my job,” Heget said during the hearing of confirmation earlier this month.

Democratic senators questioned heget, a military veteran, for his qualification to lead one of the largest agencies in the country.

Heget, 44, a warship veteran in Afghanistan and Iraq, later works at FOX. He has little of the traditional experience expected for the position of the National Security Cabinet – a role that is usually played by senior civil servants, experienced politicians, generals and high -level leaders.

Heget was also asked during the hearing, especially by women’s senators, for his previous comments that women should not serve in fighting. He replied that his concern was not women who serve in battle, but in maintaining a certain standard in the US military.

The confirmation process was overshadowed by the allegations of violation. He was accused of sexual assault on unnamed women in 2017 in a hotel room in Monterey, California. He has repeatedly refused the charge.

Recently confirmed Minister of Defense also faced allegations of excessive drinking, including work events and cheating in his previous two marriages.

“I’m not the perfect person, but the redemption is real,” he said during the hearing.

Earlier this week, he was accused of abuse of alcohol and spouses in a sworn declaration given to a congress committee by his ex-daughter-in-law. Heget’s lawyer denied the allegations.

But many Republicans, including Trump, maintain their support for heget.

For Alaska Senator Lisa Murkovski, a Republican who voted against confirmation on Friday, past claims helped swinging their voice.

In a statement published days before the vote, she said his previous behavior “demonstrated a lack of judgment that was disobedient to someone who would lead our armed forces.”

Mean Senator, meanwhile, Maine Susan Collins, another republican who voted against Heget, said he was “concerned that he had no experience and perspective needed to succeed in work.”