Pete Hegseth’s nomination to lead the Pentagon clears a key hurdle in the Senate

WASHINGTON — The Senate voted Thursday to advance Pete Hegseth’s nomination to become President Donald Trump’s defense secretary, putting him on track for final confirmation at the end of the week.

The vote was 51 to 49, with only two Republicans — moderate Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine — voted with all 47 Democrats to try to block Hegseth. He needed a simple majority to advance to a final vote.

Shortly before the vote, Murkowski became the first Republican to publicly oppose Hegseth’s nomination, saying some of the past behavior he has admitted to demonstrates a “lack of judgment” and is “unbecoming of someone who would lead our armed forces.”

After the vote, Collins said she had expressed concern directly to Hegseth about his earlier comments that women should not serve in combat roles.

In his confirmation hearing, Hegseth walked back those comments, telling senators he supports women serving in combat as long as standards remain high. But Collins said in her statement that she is “not convinced that his position on women serving in combat roles has changed.”

Still, Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., who has guided Hegseth through the process, said after the vote that Hegseth will be confirmed on Friday. Asked about Murkowski and Collins opposing him, Wicker said, “I wasn’t surprised, and I understand that.”

Thursday’s vote marked a an important step forward for Hegseth, whose nomination last month appeared to be on the brink of collapse after multiple news reports detailed allegations of alcohol abuse, a sexual assault and financial mismanagement of the organizations he led.

Hegseth, a former Fox News anchor and Army combat veteran, has denied all of these allegations.

The GOP-led Senate voted to end debate on his nomination after 11th-hour revelations that a former sister-in-law of Hegseth had said in a sworn statement shared with senators that he had engaged in “erratic and aggressive behavior over many years” and had made his ex-wife, Samantha Hegseth, “fear for her safety” while they were married. The former sister-in-law, Daniella Hegseth, also wrote in the affidavit that “Samantha once told me that Hegseth grabbed her groin without consent in their home.”

The statement was made in response to a request for information from Sen. Jack Reed, DR.I., the top Democrat on the Defense Committee. The existence of the statement was first reported by NBC News.

Daniella Hegseth said she “did not personally witness physical or sexual abuse by Hegseth.” Samantha Hegseth said in a statement that there was no physical abuse during her marriage to Hegseth. A lawyer for his ex-wife did not respond to the previously unreported allegation.

Tim Parlatore, an attorney for Pete Hegseth, wrote in an email: “As NBC is well aware, the actual contestant, Samantha, has denied these false allegations, yet NBC irresponsibly continues to report false allegations from an uninvolved third party who whether they were facts.”

Despite Thursday’s vote, Hegseth is still undecided. Four GOP senators joining all 47 Democrats in the final vote would result in Hegseth falling short of the majority he needs to confirm.

While sens. Shelly Moore Capito, RW.Va., and Mike Rounds, RS.D., confirmed they would vote for Hegseth, and Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, reiterated her support for him Thursday, several others remained on the fence.

Late. Thom Tillis, RN.C., said he would vote to advance Hegseth’s nomination and appeared to be leaning in favor of final passage as he examined the myriad allegations against Hegseth.

“I’m still examining the record … I’m going through extensive due diligence,” Tillis said Thursday. “I’ve spoken to numerous people. I’ve spent hours on the phone. I have yet to find an example of a first-hand account with corroboration to support the claims. If I do, it would sway my vote.

“But I’ve done due diligence and I’ve looked for it and I haven’t found it,” Tillis said.

Wicker, the chairman of the armed services, signaled how close a final vote on Hegseth could be, suggesting that Vice President JD Vance may be needed to break a 50-50 tie.

“If I was JD Vance, I’d keep going,” Wicker said.

In opposition to Hegseth’s nomination, Reed, the top armed services Democrat, said in the Senate that he believed the FBI’s initial background check of Hegseth was rushed and incomplete. He added that the FBI has had to give him two additional briefings on Hegseth since then, including Wednesday night.

“Prior to Mr. Hegseth’s hearing, I was alarmed that investigators had neglected to contact critical witnesses and whistleblowers, and I urged them to reopen the investigation,” Reed said in his speech. “In my experience on the Defense Committee, it is unprecedented that the FBI has returned to my office two more times, as recently as last night, to provide additional information about the nominee.

“Honestly, I still don’t think the background check is done,” he said.