WASHINGTON — FBI officials briefed the top members of the Senate Armed Services Committee late Friday afternoon on the findings from their background check of Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to serve as defense secretary, according to two people aware of the briefings.
The results of the FBI’s probe have not been shared with the other members of the committee, raising concerns among Democrats on the panel that the findings may have gaps that would necessitate further investigation.
Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., chair of the armed services panel, and Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, its top Democrat, each huddled separately with FBI officials on Friday for over an hour, according to a person familiar with the briefings, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive proceedings.
During the sessions, the senators were able to review the findings and ask questions about them, but were not given copies of a report to share with their colleagues.
With only days to go before Hegseth’s confirmation hearing on Tuesday, it appears increasingly unlikely that other senators on the panel will be shown that information before querying him about his fitness to run the Pentagon.
Rank-and-file Democrats have been up in arms about the lack of access, saying it is necessary for them to review the FBI’s findings.
“I need to see his FBI background check, we need to see his financial disclosures,” said Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill. “And we need to know about any other potential lawsuits he might be facing, any other allegations he might be facing.”
Public reports have documented accusations that Hegseth committed sexual assault, mismanaged the veterans’ nonprofits he ran and was frequently publicly intoxicated. Hegseth has said that the sexual assault allegation arose from a consensual encounter. He also told reporters last month that he was “a different man than I was years ago,” describing his evolution as “a redemption story.”
The allegations against Hegseth have failed to sway most Republican senators, many of whom have argued that senators should discount such claims unless the accusers were willing to come forward publicly.
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
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