and todd. >> todd: to be clear, we heard senator tommy tuberville explain all indications are pete hegseth will get across the finish line and confirmed but today will be a gruelling day for our former colleague on the hill. >> madeleine: yeah, well democrats have definitely been signalling optimism around hegseth. they are facing pressure from the trump team to get the nominees in place quickly to get to work on the mandate trump has been given for the american people to carry out trump's agenda. there could be fireworks today, especially with democrats looking to press pete hegseth on a number of issues. >> carley: hearings start today and happen throughout the week. when does the senate vote on these picks? it does not happen until after the inauguration, right? >> that is our expectation, we don't have a date just yet. >> todd: you said in your piece and it is important to note this, there is some obstruction from the democrats, but when you talk to the rank and file, people who served in the miller ta, i've spoken to a bunch, everyone wants hegseth. >> carley: interesting, now you hav

just, your quick reaction for a moment on pete hegseth today. committee. >> great being back with you. i thought pete did a really good job, you could see. there are some people trying to take their cheap shots people are fed up with that approach. he showed why president trump picked him, he talked about we have a few general that won worl world war ii and we have over 40 generals, today we're top heavy. and i know some people would be upset about, that most people across country are hungry for those reforms that pete will usher in, i thought he handled himself well. >> one 100%, great moment. mr. scalise. one big beautiful bill. clip has speaker speaking, you are standing next to him. good time table, end of february for a basketball -- budget resolution. all done by memorial day. why not? that semithat is my point, why not. >> we talked about it during campaign we're not waiting until november 5, i hope we win we started working months ago. i met with president trump months ago, i have been meeting with committee chairs we laid out what we wou

many have not spoke with pete hegseth before this hearing is taking place, despite the fact pete hegseth spent several weeks trying to meet with republican and democratic lawmakers. >> brian: if you look at the democratic side jack reid, serious guy, janine, same thing. gilllibrand, same. these are ones i think will go out for blood, duckworth, elizabeth warren, who submitted 100 questions, rono and richard blumenthal, who was last night frantic because he thought he had a great witness and it blew up in his face. pete has 20 years of war experience and this man-made up being in war. pete comes with harvard, princeton, iraq, afghanistan, gitmo experience. you have under secretaries that are going to be extremely organized. they understand big corporations. they are seeing surge of people signing up for the military, we have not had that in four years. >> lawrence: because culture is changing. they understand what donald trump stands for and pete wants to get back to war fighting. you saw chuck schumer, this is resistance. republicans on the committee and senate that have to vote on this,

pete hegseth fixed that. me of his findings from this morning saying, the problem isn't that the u.s. military has gone "woke" as maga partisans like hegseth allege peer the problem is america became complacent after the cold war when it downsized its armed forces and defense industrial base. since then come the united states prepared and military suitable for fighting insurgents in afghanistan or iraq, but inadequate for an extended fight against the major power. also max boot adding this to his column, saying, now it will be up the senators to decide if hegseth, who was dogged by accusations of mismanagement and misconduct at the two nonprofits that he ran, is the right person to rebuild america's atrophy defense capabilities. committee members should grill him not only about his past, but about his plans to address this challenge. his record doesn't inspire confidence that he can rise to the task that would severely test far more experienced executives. that is from max boot in the washington post. this is

your quick reaction for a moment on pete hegseth today in the house --? armed services committee. >> yeah, great being back with you, larry. i thought pete did a really good job and, you know, you could see there's some people that are just trying to take chair cheap shots and people are fed up with that approach. and he showed why president trump picked him. he said there was only a few generals that won world war ii and we have over 40 generals today and it's very top heavy at pentagon and he wants to right side it and go in and focus on the war fighter on our men and women in uniform in the front lines and not all the big bureaucracy at the pentagon and some will be upset about that but most people in the country are hungry for the reforms that pete will usher in and he handled himself well. larry: that was a great moment when he laid that out. and mr. scalise, one big beautiful bill and you're standing next it him and good timetable and end of february for a budget resolution. easter for reconciliation bill and all done by memorial day. why not? that'

pete hegseth. right. right after nine over 11, you are promised great victories in iraq and afghanistan, and you are lied to and misled by george w bush and dick cheney. and after the kind of outburst of jingoism around those wars on the right, you know, if you're a fox news person, all you were told for the bush years is we're on the precipice of some great victory. there was a lot of anger and resentment about how those wars turned out. but importantly, and this is not unusual when superpowers fail to win wars, that anger didn't get channeled kind of at foreign policy. it got channeled at an enemy within. and if you take seriously, as i do, what hank said is said and written for many years, he is railing against liberals. he's railing against islam. he's railing against, you know, quote unquote woke culture. he's railing against women in combat, gays in the military. it's all these enemies within. and he shares that with trump, and he shares trump's interest in having a secretary of defense who's totall

all of that made it look like pete hegseth might, just might just fail to get the republican support he needed to become trump's next defense secretary. and a lot of the attention about hegseth fate fell on one senator in particular, senator joni ernst of iowa. senator ernst is herself a sexual assault survivor, something she has spoken openly about in the past. >> abuse is not something you can just simply forget. it stays with you forever. and i know this personally. as a survivor and as a united states senator, i feel it is important to be a voice for the thousands of victims across iowa and so many more across our nation who have fallen prey to sexual assault, to rape, to harassment and other forms of abuse. >> again, that is senator joni ernst saying she feels it is important to be a voice for victims of sexual assault and rape and harassment. senator ernst is also a veteran, which made his comments about women in the military seemingly a particularly tough pill for her to swallow. here is how senator ernst spoke about pete hegseth just last month. >> i did have a very long, leng

pete hegseth: senator, i would like to clarify. 'm talking about that issue, it's not about the capabilities of men and women. it's about standards. lisa: hegseth has ivy league diplomas and has multiple tours in the military. he has led small veterans groups, but nothing larger. most recently, he's been a co-host on fox news. if confirmed, hegseth would head the largest agency in the federal government. committee chair roger wicker praised him as unconventional. >> that may be what makes mr. hegseth an excellent choice. lisa: but democrats decried him as lowering standards for the top defense job. >> i hardly think you are prepared to do the job. lisa: hegseth focused on his leadership skills and vision. pete hegseth: i want smarter and more capable people around me than me. and you will get that at the department. what is your bedtime? lisa: but democratic senators hash raised other concerns, past affairs and reports of hegseth being falling-down drunk at work events. pete hegseth: a small handful of anonymous sources were allowed

help you save. ♪ >> carley: many members of the media not going easy on defense secretary nominee pete hegseth >> he is manifestly unqualified for virtually any high ranking government position and he demonstrated that frequently today hegseth was well prepared and was clear and recognized there was some concern couldn't handle more than one round of questioning. >> what makes you so awesome? republican senators on the republican senate committee did best to help out trump's pick for defense secretary. they did everything but walk over and hug him, the republicans. >> fox news contributor joe concha joins us now. did the mainstream media see and hear the same hearing that you and i and carley and everybody else saw? >> it was prewritten the reactions beforehand, todd, right? they were going to react that way no matter how pete hegseth had performed yesterday and he performed, i think he crushed it, quite frankly. this was the theater of the absurd. both from democrats, who were questioning pete, and from the media reaction that we saw yesterday and last evening. i mean, at that hearing, the co

okay, how about "a priest, a rabbi, and pete hegseth walk into a bar at 10:00 am." w, markwayne? look, i don't know if this was really the defense that hegseth wanted, though. "look, we're all pieces of shit here. let he without an ashley madison premium account cast the first stone!" i'll tell you who else probably didn't appreciate that defense: the other senators. they probably got home and their wives were like, "i saw markwayne at the confirmation hearing today. he said that everyone in the senate cheats on their wives." "honey, you can't trust markwayne, he's confused! the man has two first names smushed together! it's insanity!" but after that, they did, in fact, get into hegseth's policy positions and there was one in particular policy that had people very worked up. >> you previously have made a series of inflammatory statements about women in combat. >> in a recent podcast, you said, quote, "i'm straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles." >> you say we need moms, but not in the military, especially in combat units. what's wrong with a

back to every day respect and loyalty and belief in in country, with our military it starts with pete hegseth, pete is someone that believes in this country. larry: senator tuberville coming up on the show. tomorrow, hundreds more veterans are expected to peacefully rally in support of pete hegseth, at vietnam veteran's memorial and other washington, d.c., landmarks. now in addition to serving as much decorated combat veteran in several theaters of war pete hegseth was educated at princeton and harvard and wrote a book, war on warriors, that argues impartimportance of ends woke f fixation on diversity, equity and inclusion. now, joe biden leaves white house. with world in a dangerous place. donald trump intends to turn this around to america's advantage. senate must put true warrior pete hegseth at mr. trump's side to help him do it, and that's the riff. all right, joining me now bam bap senator tom -- alabama senator tommy tuberville. i don't know if you got wind of the -- they just put if out after 3:00 p.m., fox news digital report on the military evaluations of pete hegseth. but these eva

, the critical vote that we have been waiting for. >> senator joni ernst revealing her vote on pete hegseth confirmation as president elect. >> trump appears to have won the battle for his pick to lead the defense department. >> democratic senator elizabeth warren will join me live after she clashed with hegseth today over his stance on women in combat. also tonight, the death toll in los angeles has now risen to 25 people. while firefighters are making progress today, forecasters have an ominous new warning. and who's in and who's out. michelle obama won't attend donald trump's inauguration next monday, but mark zuckerberg will. and he is not the only one. we have a few more names for you tonight. i'm kaitlan collins in washington, and this is the source. and there is breaking news here in d.c. after a dramatic and tense day on capitol hill, republican senator joni ernst of iowa, who at one point expressed reservations about president-elect trump's pick to run the pentagon and had the power potentially to sink pete hegseth nomination has just made a very big announcement. >> he was at a ad

do you think you could change her opinion on pete hegseth to lead the department? looking forward to finally meeting with him tomorrow. i will ask him questions about a lot of prosaic stuff like getting the nation's shipbuilding back on track etc.. this is the most important cabinet position, in my opinion. you need is somebody not only of solid qualification, but somebody whose character is very, very stellar. i will say the nominee has more baggage on the personal behavior and character side than any nominee that has come before any of the committees i have been on in the senate in the last 12 years. i am looking forward to the discussion tomorrow and we will see where it goes. >> pete hegseth says he is a change agent and his supporters say he is a disruptor that the defense department desperately needs. it is opaque and bureaucratic, they say. it has failed seven audits. is that what the position needs? >> i do think we need some significant change. maybe not modest change, significant change. but if you want to change an organization you need eight track recor

tomorrow, hundreds more veterans expected to peacefully rally in support of pete hegseth at veteran's memorial and dc landmarks and in addition to serving as a much decorated combat veteran and several wars and pete s hegseth was educatedn princeton and harvard and war on warriors that argued the importance of ending woke fixation on diversity, equity, and ibram collusion and changing in favor of reinvigorating the warrior culture in the pentagon and all through the armed services. now, joe biden leaves the white house with the world in an extremely dangerous place, donald trump intends to turn this completely around to america's advantage. the senate must put true warrior pete hegseth at mr. trump ocean side to help him do it and that's the riff. all right, joining me now is alabama senator tommy tuberville, aforementioned great friend of the show, and strong helicoptering seth and i don't know if you -- hegseth db of interaural known if you god wind and put it out a little after 3:00 p.m. and fox news digital report on the military evaluations of pete hegseth but these evaluations i

pete hegseth to be secretary of defense. in light of the continued suffering and death in and around los angeles california -- los angeles, california, i will ask my colleagues and those in the audience to observe a moment of silence. amen. . thank you. i want to take this opportunity to thank my good friend, ranking member jack reed. this is my first opportunity to chair this committee and congress. i want to sank -- thank senator reed. he cares deeply about national security and about the united states of america. particularly, the men and women who stand watch here and around the world to protect united states. i want to thank you for the many courtesies you have extended to meet in the past and i look forward to working with you again in a bipartisan fashion in this congress. it is appropriate to recognize and welcome three senators attending their very first senate armed services committee hearing as members. senator banks of indiana, senator sheehy of montana and senator slotkin of michigan. we are excited to have you

first of all, pete hegseth, in some of the more pointed questioning about his qualifications. >> pete hegseth made it clear that he would have no idea what he's doing as secretary of defense. >> which means one thing you would expect to see in a pete hegseth run defense department is that a whole bunch of people undersecretaries, assistant secretaries, the deputy secretary, all these other people would basically be running the pentagon without very much guidance. >> because as far as pete hegseth is concerned, you know, dei programs are the enemy and everything else. >> there wasn't much substance here to find out what he actually would care about in the rest of his management of the defense department. so one thing you'd have is a lot of chaos, because when you have a weak, unqualified secretary of defense, the pentagon and the defense department is huge. >> it's several fiefdoms. >> and, you know, it's like trying to it's 3 million people, all of whom are in different departments within that department. >> and he would spend his time going on tv and doing what he did today at this h

democrats think they are more well behaved than pete hegseth? e members lied about serving in vietnam and mind about their rays to get a job at harvard. pete doesn't have anything to be ashamed of he is a brave man is grown up and changed. but what's driving democrat so crazy is he is in a as usual a they don't care about booze and those are just political attacks what they are really up to is they are defending the status quo. may be can't build chips or recruit after 20 years in afghanistan no one was fired. the democrats don't want accountability but accountability is coming. >> there isn't been no accountability for the disaster of the withdrawal and afghanistan and that's precisely why we are here today. leadership has been unwilling to taking and ability. it's time to restore that to our senior rings. we have too many people here in air-conditioned offices that like to point fingers at the guys in dark and dangerous places and the girls in helicopters and enemy territory you are doing things people in washington, d.c., would never dare to d

call this number >> dana: president-elect trump's nominee for defense secretary pete hegseth arrivingto applause and cheers. his confirmation hearing about to get underway any moment. a big grassroots push to get support for pete. you saw that in a big way as he walked in when we were in a commercial break coming back. jennifer griffin is on capitol hill. what can we expect to see? jennifer. >> dana, dozens of vets for pete have flooded into the room. those are people you just heard shouting usa and cheering for pete. this is likely to be one of the most contentious confirmation hearings of the trump administration and why they are starting first. the fireworks are likely to start right off the bat. pete hegseth will talk about returning the warrior ethos to the u.s. military but also know some other opening statements will get heated. tough questions about hegseth's qualifications. democrats are likely to focus on his abuse of alcohol in the past. treatment of women which led to him paying a financial settlement to a woman who accused him of sexual assault at a republican women's con

pete hegseth says the liberal media smeared him.ch. >> a small handful of anonymous sources were allowed to drive a smear campaign and agenda about me because our left-wing media in america today sadly does not care about the truth. all they were out to do, mr. chairman, was to destroy me. and why do they want to destroy me? because i'm a change agent in a threat to them. >> trace: he really did get the whole treatment. >> when you look at the an honor means trump has had, it's definitely the case that pete hegseth has gotten the most eight from left-wing media for a variety of reasons. one is the fact he's been an ardent trump supporter for years. he's spoken out against woke policies in the military and i think even the fact that he's been a fox news host, that doesn't really give you brownie points with the left. i think the other reason they were terrified of him is he is a good communicator. he proved that today. i think democrat senators are coming up of this just hoping they had a sound bite go viral because i don't really th

>> meanwhile, the new york times reports that investigators reached out to pete hegseth second ex-wife, samantha hegseth. >> the couple were married from 2010 until 2018, and according to the times, fbi investigators had an initial initial perfunctory conversation with her on january 8th, according to people familiar with the apprized or apprized of the report. >> mr. hegseth then made multiple attempts to contact the bureau for a more substantive discussion, but her calls were not returned last week, said those with knowledge of the investigation, who were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. let's bring in the host of way too early, ali vitali and pulitzer prize winning columnist and associate editor of the washington post, eugene robinson. >> thank you all for being with us. let's start. jon lemire, let me ask you, what is the reaction? and i guess, to this very incomplete fbi report, but also, more importantly, a lot of people asking, how do you have an fbi report on pete hegseth when those with the most explosive charges aren't even a part of that fbi report, and you ha

pete hegseth in charge.f you got dropped down on the ground in a war zone, which i have been to, as a female, do you want pete hegseth, do you want toxic masculinity covering your back or do you want the five covering your back? i guarantee if there was a choice if you are getting dropped down on the ground, boots on the ground in the middle east, you are going to choose pete hegseth, toxic men like the six, toxic men being your verbiage, not mine, versus these little pansies like the five? host: ok, angela in north carolina. let's hear from republican, tom, connecticut. caller: that caller was hard to follow because she is right on, i think pete is going to do a good job. he would like to rebuild the military and it is like she's doing and remarked because there's nobody there. i don't have much to say because i'm not a senator, but i do appreciate the republican senators fighting back this time. leaning back and let the democrats tear them to pieces. i appreciate them fighting back and i wish pete hegseth

maria: democrats wasting no time in attacking pete hegseth. watch. >> you have many concerns about your record in your public statement because they are so hurtful to the men and women who are currently serving in the u.s. military, harmful to morell harmful to good order and discipline. we will have to change how you see women to do this job well. i don't know if you are capable of that. >> in you casually cheat on a second wife and she on the mother of a child who was born two months before in utility are completely cleared. >> how is that a complete clear. >> what are you afraid of you cannot answer this question, yes or no did you lead an audit, do you not know the answer. maria: oklahoma senator markwayne mullin by flipping the script on the other side of the aisle. >> how many senators have showed up drunk to vote at night? have any of you asked them to step down and resign for the job? don't tell me you haven't seen it because i know you have and how many senators have gotten a divorce for cheating on their wives? did you ask them to st

if you thought today's hearing with pete hegseth was wild.ate ton cut rates in fission hearings underway for trump's cabinet and roger marshal joining us to preview what's ahead. we'll be back after the break. >> yes or no, did you lead an audit? yes or no, did you lead an audit? yes or no? what are you afraid of? you can't absolutely this question? yes or no, did you lead an audit? do you know know the answer? yes or no? yes or no? yes or no? i'll take this as a no. where ya headed? susan: where am i headed? am i just gonna take what the markets gives me? no. i can do some research. ya know, that's backed by j.p. morgan's leading strategists like us. when you want to invest with more confidence... the answer is j.p. morgan wealth management (auctioneer) let's start the bidding at 5 million dollars. thank you, sir. (man) these people of privilege... hoarding the financial advantages for far too long. (auctioneer) 7.5 at the back. (man) look at them — unaware that robinhood gold members now enjoy the vip treatment — a 3% ira match on retiremen

defense secretary pick pete hegseth. ttle experience in leadership, pitched himself as the much needed change at the pentagon and brushed off the numerous controversies surrounding him. >> now, it is true, and has been acknowledged, that i don't have a similar biography to defense secretaries of the last 30 years. but as president trump also told me, we've repeatedly placed people atop the pentagon with supposedly the right credentials, whether they are retired generals, academics or defense contractor executives. and where has it gotten us? he believes, and i humbly agree, that it's time to give someone with dust on his boots the helm, a change agent, someone with no vested interest in certain companies or specific programs or approved narratives. my only special interest is the war fighter. >> you know? there's so much that was said yesterday, it would literally take us four hours just to get through the misinformation that was put out there. but there there are just some things that we just we just have to stop before

or if you want to talk about being unqualified, pete hegseth, the -- not pete hegseth, i'm sorry. pete buttigieg, the gentleman that is over the department of transportation. the gentleman who true was a mayor and now is he over transportation. where were their callout on those individuals, right? it doesn't matter as long as it applies to them because, listen, if you are a democrat you are qualified for everything, evidently. >> laura: senator cotton, if they thought that hegseth was going to be a big stumbling block for trump, they probably wouldn't have given him much trouble at this hearing. and they were pathetic today. nothing hit pete. i mean they think he is actually going to do what trump directs him to do with consultation with military experts. but that's what they are really worried about, correct? >> yeah. they are, laura. just look at the issue i discussed with pete today. that's women in ground combat roles. people have talk about women in combat. women have been in combat for a long time as pilots, medics or mechanics. talk about infantry and artillery and there are

she's also seen as as controversial of a choice as pete hegseth is. do you think you could support her nomination with what you know? >> i want to wait until the hearing. she has some questions to ask. one of the questions is, how come you've converted suddenly on a number of important issues? she's taken some very firm stands in the past on some important intelligence issues. now she's softened those positions. i want to try to get to the bottom of exactly where she is. but but the other question there is also qualifications. does she have any real background in intelligence? we're talking about a job that supervises or oversees 18 different intelligence agencies. it's very complex. it's a very important, critical part of our national security apparatus. and again, the question for her is what has prepared you for this job? and then secondarily, what are the positions you've taken with regard to intelligence that are of concern or at least need to be examined? >> you have been one of the driving forces in the senate pushing to ban tiktok in the unite

throughout my time working with pete hegseth, he consistently demonstrated exceptional integrity and leadership. i asked unanimous consent to enter this letter into record without objection, so ordered, senator schmidt. thank you, mr. chairman. mr. hegseth, good to see you here today. thank you for your service. thank you and your willingness to serve. i also want to thank you for your clarity in articulating the vision you have for the department of defense and restoring an ethos, a warrior ethos, which is in stark contrast to the ethos we've seen in the last four years, which is of weakness and wokeness. and i want to drill down on a few things specifically and exactly how we've gotten to where we've gotten with recruiting and morale. di there's been a little bit of discussion about this, but for those watching at home, di is not about giving everybody opportunity. it is rooted in cultural marxism. the idea that you pit the room, any room with oppressor versus oppressed, it's race essentialism, and it is poison. it has no business whatsoever in our military. i think the american peo

banks: the hearing went exceptionally well for pete hegseth. the democrats were looking for a gotcha moment but they d n and g anonymous sources and allegations. at the end of the day when we walked out of the room icoul tht that pete, who had momentum going into the hearing, had even more momentum coming out. it went very well for him. he focused on the issues, why it matters we sent the secretary of defense, who is serious about preparing to fight and win wars to be the next secretary. why donald trump picked him to do that. i think he picked up even more support in the room after the hearing. i am looking forward to us moving quickly to confirm him on january 20 and sent him to the pentagon to do his job. amna: several senators have said plainly they don't believe mr. hegseth has the experience to do the job. his management experience is limited to a couple small nonprofits. why do you believe the lack of experience is not an issue here? sen. banks: keep in mind, those were partisan attacks. the democrats on the committee, the minority, they

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pete hegseth. democrats say there's holes in that. republicans say that the democrats are just looking for controversy right now. but there are a lot of members in the rank and file who do want to see this investigation. and one of the things that the democrats plan to address in this hearing in a matter of minutes, is to see it. they want to all see this. and typically for nominees, it's only the chairman and the ranking member who see those background checks. but it doesn't always happen that way. in fact, oftentimes or sometimes in controversial situations like one of the most famous one, john tower, who was the last nominee, who was actually voted down by the senate, a cabinet nominee voted down by the senate over allegations himself of excessive drinking as he was picked to lead the pentagon. the whole committee at that point did see the fbi background check. expect democrats to point to that in this hearing here. but as i tried to ask pete hegseth on his way in, if you support having the whol

joni ernst specifically has some questions for pete hegseth.st is a former army national guard commander and endured a torrent of criticism from prominent trump supporters late last year after publicly raising specific issues. she wanted to address the role of women in the military, sexual assault prevention and auditing the pentagon for waste and abuse. her questions and eventual votes could be key to her future, as well as her own. gretchen, i think joni ernst is an important figure here. what do you think? here? >> oh, yeah. i mean, she's the linchpin to this, but what's really troubling to me, and i think should be troubling to all women and men, quite honestly, is that this shouldn't just hang on the shoulders of female senators to be the ones that are actually going to ask the tough questions or actually raise the issues of sexual misconduct. we as a country should all be concerned about this. >> and i think what was disheartening to julie and myself and many other people who work in this advocacy space was that before the end of the year

how did pete hegseth do? >> well, you know, it it at moments, it was a pretty rough hearing, but, uh, you know, it was pretty clear that he had been pretty prepared to deal with the more controversial questions that he was going to get. it reminded me a little bit of the kind of hearings we've seen for justices of the supreme court, uh, who are able to provide an answer that, uh, is very difficult to suddenly challenge that particular candidate based on that kind of answer. he was giving those kinds of answers that i think in the end, kind of gave him a chance to be able to to push back on a lot of the areas that have raised questions for senators. >> you not only know what it's like to sit in that chair, you know what it's like to run the pentagon, to be the top civilian at the pentagon. all of the challenges, all of the experience that you drew on. i didn't even mention the fact that you were chief of staff at the white house. i could go on and on. maybe you were uniquely qualified. certainly. maybe in many

pete's one lucky guy. we've trained him well. democrats didn't lay a glove on hegseth all morning. was four hours, no bathroom breaks. and pete remained focused and professional. under fire. >> statements. you said about people who have views differently than you that we're the enemy. are you saying that 50% of the dod, if they hold liberal views or leftist views, or are democrats, are not welcome in the military? are you saying that? >> senator, i volunteered to deploy to afghanistan under democrat president barack obama. i also volunteered to guard the inauguration of joe biden, but was denied the opportunity to serve because i was identified as an extremist by my own unit for a christian tattoo. >> democrats became so cliche that at one point, tim kaine basically asked, when did you stop beating your wife? >> did you ever engage in any acts of physical violence against any of your wives? senator? absolutely not. but you would agree with me that if someone had committed physical violence against a spouse, that would be disqualifying to serve as secretary of defense, correct? sena

. >>> how do you solve a problem like pete hegseth? from pick for defense secretary will be considered to scandal for the job? >>> a new year's resolution for democrats that does not include the phrase "when they go low, we go high. i am charles coleman jr. in for ayman mohyeldin we have a lot to talk about. >>> welcome. in the closing weeks of the election, billionaire elon musk have this to say about a potential kamala harris presidency. >> the machine that she represents -- >> she is just a puppet. there is no point in attacking a puppet. >> attacking a puppet. the puppet master. a puppet to who exactly? i'm not even really sure that musk even really knows, but now it has become clear he has found his own puppet in president donald trump. the x owner travels with them all over the world, joining meetings with fire leaders. he is with them so much he has taken up residence in a cottage at trump's mar-a-lago resort in florida and in a jaw-dropping shelf hour, it was musk, not trump, who brought the country to the brink of a government

joni ernst told fox digital, she will back pete hegseth. ericans deserve strong president of defense, i will work with pete to create the most lethal force. first is pam bondi, john ratcliffe and marco rubio at 10:00, guys. >> steve: question on your experience. you have been posted at the pentagon for a long time. you have a lot of contacts. what do people that have been there 10 or 20 years, what did they think of pete hegseth and his performance yesterday? >> i received text messages from people who loved what they heard. some other brass are nervous, they know changes are coming and generals could be replaced. from rank and file i spoke to, a very excited about pete hegseth coming to be secretary. >> brian: you are hearing recruiting numbers going up. >> lucas: people think recruiting will get a boost with pete hegseth. talking about standards. they don't want to see standards lowered, they want military to stay elite, elite unitses should stay elite including 11 bravo infantrymen, they should not lower standards for women. >> brian: be

pete hegseth was serving in iraq and afghanistan. tim kane was running for office over and over again. he is the embodiment of everything that is wrong with the washington swamp but he's not alone. today many democratic senators disgrace themselves. at one point elizabeth warren galt -- almost got left out of the room. >> will you put your money wear your mouth is and agree that when you leave this job you will not work for the defence industry for ten years? >> that's not even a question i've thought about because it's not one -- my motivation for this job. >> i just need a "yes" or "no" here, time is short. i need a "yes" or "no". >> i would consult with the president what the policy. >> you are quite sure that every general who serves should not go directly into the defence industry for ten years. you are not willing to make that same pledge. >> i'm not a general senator. >> sean: it such a waste of time, a colossal waste of time. they also looked foolish after exposing a real problem with the u.s. military,. >> the statements you

i'm potentially looking at you, pete hegseth. we're going to get into it next week. >> i worked really hard on my good credit score and i want a new credit card. >> but what if i'm not approved? i don't want to get a ding on my good credit. >> so i'm using experian to find cards with no ding to climb. >> see these? >> they say no ding decline. which means if i get denied, my fico score won't get a ding. >> sounds good to me? definitely check out your options with experian and get the experian app. >> find credit cards with no ding decline and apply for them with confidence. >> muscle cramps were keeping me up at night, so then i tried slow mag, the magnesium plus calcium supplement that helps relax tense muscles so i can rest comfortably and slow. mag tablets have a slow release formula that's gentle on my stomach. that's why i use slow mag. >> here you go. >> is there any way to get a better price on this? >> have you checked single care? whenever my customers ask how to get a better price on their meds, i tell them about single

pete hegseth the president elect's pick to be defense secretary, kicked off those proceedings before the senate armed services committee on tuesday. republicans on the panel were mostly deferential to hegseth, while democrats went on offense, drilling down on hegseth biography and past allegations of sexual misconduct and drinking on the job. >> are you saying that you would stand in the breach and push back if you were given an illegal order? >> i start by saying i reject the premise that president trump you've any illegal orders at all. >> mike, this isn't a hypothetical. >> you can't seem to grasp that there is no u.s. military as we know it without the incredible women that we serve, women who've earned their place in their units. you have not earned your place as secretary of defense. >> one of your colleagues said that you got drunk at an event at a bar and chanted, kill all muslims. another colleague, not anonymous. we have this said that you took coworkers to a strip club. you were drunk, you tried to dance with strippers. you had to be held off the stage and one of your emplo

lauren good morning john. >> we expect that pete hegseth donald trump's pick to lead the pentagon could arrive on capitol hill at any moment. obviously, we are just about an hour away from this hearing beginning, and you can expect that hegseth is going to face a series of tough questions. we know from democrats, perhaps even from some republicans, about his past, including that alleged sexual assault that you just referred to, as well as allegations that he mismanaged a veterans organization that he ran. now, hegseth has denied these allegations, and he was never charged with sexual assault. but we are also going to be watching really closely for how he defines what exactly he would change about the culture of the pentagon. and we did get an early peek at his opening statement. here's what he said. he said, quote, the standard issue secdef have degraded our readiness, our lethality and our ability to win wars. there has never been a singular focus on the warfighter, and that's why we are losing wars and deterrence capabilities. now, as you noted, we can expect that democrats are going

and pete hegseth has never been charged criminally with sexual assault. s that hegseth denies with regards to what the woman alleges. hegseth said it was a consensual encounter. senate democrats, meanwhile, have voiced their concerns about him. senator jack reed, the top democrat on the senate armed services committee, which is holding tomorrow's hearing, said last week this quote. today's meeting did not relieve my concerns about mr. hague's lack of qualifications and raised more questions than answers. as with any nominee for this critical position, mr. hegseth must undergo the same high level of scrutiny as prior secretary of defense nominees. senator tammy duckworth, also on the committee and the senator who served in iraq, said this, quote, he is not qualified to do the job. he has managed fewer people than the manager of an applebee's end quote, meaning it will be left to republicans to move trump's pick along if they choose to do so. a point made in new york magazine in this quote. it is the first serious test of donald trump's newly invigorated str

tuesday is pete hegseth. this confirmation hearing for defense secretary in front of the senate armed services committee. 9:30 a.m. on c-span three is when and where you can watch that. wednesday it is marco rubio, his hearing before the senate foreign relations committee. that is 10:00 a.m. wednesday on c-span3. and elise stefanik's hearing for the next ambassador of the united nations if she is confirmed, c-span3, 10:30 a.m. eastern, again thursday, and there will be a lot more as well throughout the week, but those are some of the key ones. we spent 20 minutes focusing on senate and confirmation hearings. what is going on in the house this week? guest: not much to be honest. the house is focused right now on planning for reconciliation, which of the process by which republicans are going to try to pass president trump's agenda. obviously this then this whole debate about one dill or two bills. it seems like an unimportant process disagreement that folks should not be focused on, that i think they should be

represents and perfectly encapsulates the complete erosion of standards that, ironically, pete hegseth likes to complain about. except hegseth attributes an erosion of standards to women women who serve their country with honor, women who go toe to toe with any man serving in the us military. here's senator tim kaine questioning pete hegseth on his past. >> you cheated on the mother of that child. less than two months after that daughter was born, didn't you? >> those were false charges. >> well, not fully investigated. >> and i was completely cleared. and i am so grateful for the marriage i have to this. you've admitted me. >> you've admitted that you had sex at that hotel on october 2017. you said it was consensual. isn't that correct? >> anything. >> you've admitted that it was consensual and you were still married and you just had a child by another woman. again, how do you explain your judgment? these false charges against me? >> you know, i investigated, and i was completely clear. you. >> we'll stop here for a second. now, here are the facts. prosecutors declined to charge pete

ratcliffe after attending pete hegseth's hearing yesterday and joins you live.r. >> good morning, steve. >> steve: let's talk a little bit about john ratcliffe for cia director. is he not going to have trouble. he has been confirmed before. >> i don't think so. as chairman of the intelligence committee i will reside over the hearing this morning. director of national intelligence. he and i agree that the cia is vintle for our country but we have to get it back to its roots. simply not doing good enough job about our adversaries around the world. for instance, i don't think anyone in washington anticipated that jihad rebels were going to rampage across syria and topple the assad tyranny over thanksgiving. that's the kind of failure we need address. we needed cia focused on its core mission, not focused on things like climate change. or whether african country is going to pass gay rights legislation. i'm confident that john is going to focus on that job and get it done. >> steve: one of your colleagues, marco rubio, is going to be up for his confirmation hearing t

and we should note for pete hegseth, we should note that pete hegseth denies a lot of those accusations. and to secretary nominee hegseth, you are always welcome to come on the show and answer questions and explain why everything senator warren just said is completely wrong. if you if you believe that the seat is there and it's warm and you're welcome, more than 150,000 people are under evacuation orders tonight. as for wildfires burn out of control around los angeles, what is the federal government doing right now to help? we're going to talk to the fema administrator next. >> now's the time to go back in time and shine a light on the family journey that led to you. learn when they said, i do, when they became heroes, how they ruled the school. curious about what you might find with billions of records, photos, and more, you're bound to find some gems. ancestry can help you piece together the past. memberships are on sale now, so start your journey today. >> i thought we had a plan for dad. he was set to go to the senior living community right by my house. then a friend suggested i tal

we've also had gretchen carlson, who more in an up to date world, worked with pete hegseth. vices committee to let hegseth alleged victim provide testimony anonymously. here's the quote while mr. hegseth has allegedly released his the survivor from her nondisclosure agreement, his attorney has threatened to sue her for defamation if she were to come forw to discuss what happened to her and to her testimony were to prevent mr. hegseth confirmation. mr. hegseth threats cast a chilling pall on women who simply want to speak out about sexual misconduct or and should be and in and of themselves disqualifying. what do you make of that? we've had something like that. we've had thousands, 28,000 service members have experienced unwanted sexual contact. in 2023, 82% of them were women, 18% of them were men, eight 8515 reports of sexual assault involving service members are still active. should this man should the should the woman who was allegedly assaulted by him be allowed to testify in your view? or should she be protected somehow and allowed to testify? >> so that's that's the pro

that's because people believe in pete hegseth. they believe in president trump. tary and get back to the warrior spirit. >> brian: jason, that's a total surprise to pete. is he truly honored and i know that firsthand. lastly when you look at the other nominees 14 of 16, almost every one of them got dates. who is the one you are most worried about concerned with what has got the most ground to make up in the hearings? >> i'm not concerned about any of president trump's they will try to come up with any delay these can look at the pace that president trump's picks are on right now we're about three times ahead of the pace for having his nominees confirmed by the full senate at the end of january. there are about three that were confirmed end of january in 2017. we will be nine or 10 by the end of january this year. really i think that's a testament to president trump knowing exactly who he wanted to pick, what they stood for and what his mandate is to bring change in this country. >> brian: jason, great job. i know you get in the inner sanctum that's great. thank yo

and so for me i can't make a good decision whether it's somebody that is as controversial as pete hegseth for noncontroversial as marco rubio if i don't look at the entire sheet of music. part of that will be hearings. like i don't even get have all these pieces together. i hope all of my colleagues take that same seriousness in our constitutional responsibility. the reason i think that's important is that's not going against the president. in my view that is helping the president. i tend to get my role as if you think of the board of directors, who directs and say i want you to see us to everything i propose. >> a lot of people actually. >> is not a good way to run a business. you want your trusted people write you to tell you what they are saying. i think it's that only consent. it's advice. i can't of the present advice if i have thoroughly investigated and understood every moving part to this nominee. >> how important not just a pete hegseth but with nominees generally how important to his personal character? >> it's huge. i try to live my life, going back to my constituents, i would