Another liberal outlet wrote a pathetic hit piece on President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, claiming he had a drinking problem during his tenure as a host on Fox News.
NBC News published an article alleging that ten unnamed, unverified sources, who the outlet claims are current or former Fox News employees, said that Hegseth, “on more than a dozen occasions,” would come to work smelling of alcohol. The sources chose to remain anonymous “out of fear of retaliation.”
“Those same two people, plus another, said that during his time there, he appeared on television after they’d heard him talk about being hungover as he was getting ready or on set,” the so-called sources said.
However, none of the “sources” the outlet spoke to could recall an instance when Hegseth missed a scheduled appearance because he’d been drinking or was hungover.
On Sunday night, The New Yorker detailed concerns about Hegseth’s drinking at two jobs he held at nonprofit veterans’ groups before he joined Fox. “A previously undisclosed whistle-blower report on Hegseth’s tenure as the president of Concerned Veterans for America, from 2013 until 2016, describes him as being repeatedly intoxicated while acting in his official capacity — to the point of needing to be carried out of the organization’s events,” the magazine reported.
Three current employees said his drinking remained a concern up until Trump announced him as his choice to run the Pentagon, at which point Hegseth left Fox.
Following the scathing article, several of Hegseth’s colleagues came forward to defend their embattled former colleague amidst the sexual misconduct allegations against him.
“Bullsh*t,” Fox and Friends co-host Will Cain declared. “100 percent bullsh*t. Actually…horsesh*t.”
Cain and Hegseth co-hosted Fox and Friends every Saturday and Sunday for five hours starting at 6 a.m.
The losers at @NBCNews never reached out to me either. @willcain is right - your story IS horseshit. You now have 2 people who sat next to him 8+ hours a week on the record. Will you retract or correct your story? https://t.co/s5YJsI23EV
— Rachel Campos-Duffy (@RCamposDuffy) December 4, 2024
Cain also highlighted a phone call between David Bellavia, a former U.S. Army soldier and Medal of Honor recipient, and NBC News. During the call, Bellavia dismissed their story as nonsense and said their claims were inaccurate.
Despite this, NBC News chose not to include a single word from the conversation in their coverage.
Rachel Campos Duffy, Cain, and Hegseth’s other Fox and Friends co-host also denied the “losers” at NBC News and demanded the outlet retract or correct its story.
You should be ashamed of yourself for posting these lies! Why don’t you ask me? I’ve had a front seat to @PeteHegseth life & maturation. I’ve seen him turn his life around spiritually & as a father & husband over the last 7 yrs. His life today revolves 100% around his family &… https://t.co/QNRaFxq51h pic.twitter.com/l2CPMLorxN
— Rachel Campos-Duffy (@RCamposDuffy) December 4, 2024
Meanwhile, amid rumors that Trump seeks to replace Hegseth with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL.) for defense secretary, the former Fox News host said that Trump told him to "keep going" and to "keep fighting" as the left attempts to bully him into withdrawing his name from consideration.
"I spoke to the President-elect this morning. He said, ‘Keep going. keep fighting. I’m behind you all the way,'” Hegseth said on Wednesday.