Trump leaves Pete Hegseth hanging against emboldened GOP senators
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President-elect Trump isn't working the phones for Pete Hegseth in his hour of need, leaving the embattled Department of Defense nominee to press his own case to skeptical senators, Axios has learned.
- "I don't think it's going anywhere," one senator told Axios about Hegseth's nomination chances.
Why it matters: Trump is on path to lose his third nominee in two weeks, and this time he's leaving his candidate out to dry.
- GOP senators took Trump's handling of the Matt Gaetz nomination as a sign he's open to changing his mind — and he's not that serious about fighting the Senate on rules and procedure just yet.
Trump waged a phone campaign in November before telling Gaetz to drop out. Before he announced Gaetz, he demanded consideration of recess appointments from Senate GOP leader candidates.
- The pipeline of backup names for defense secretary floated to the press — including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis — only further signals Trump could be open to switching things up again.
Let's run the tape on Hegseth's Wednesday:
- His meeting didn't seem to go great with top skeptic Sen. Joni Ernst, a combat veteran and sexual violence victim. The Iowa Republican issued a bland statement after the meeting, saying the convo was "frank and thorough." Hegseth has said women shouldn't serve in combat, and he faces sexual misconduct allegations.
- Hegseth promised to stay sober in the job — a promise he made both to Megyn Kelly in an interview and during a meeting with Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) — after unflattering stories about his use of alcohol.
- Hegseth pleaded with House Republicans to publicly endorse him — and said Trump was still on his side after the two spoke.
What to watch: Other potential detractors are set to meet with Hegseth next week — Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska).
- Murkowski told Axios she has "a lot of questions" for the nominee.
