Hegseth sworn in as defense secretary after narrow Senate vote

(WASHINGTON) — Pete Hegseth was sworn in to lead the Department of Defense on Saturday, after a narrow vote in the Senate.

The vote on Friday night was initially 50-50, with Vice President JD Vance then casting the tie-breaking vote.

Former GOP leader Mitch McConnell, of Kentucky, voted no. He joined Sens. Susan Collins, of Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, of Alaska, along with all Democrats in voting against Hegseth’s nomination.

The former Fox News host was sworn in at the White House on Saturday morning during a ceremony officiated by Vance.

“We look forward to having the backs of our troops and having your back in executing peace through strength, in putting America first. And in rebuilding our military,” Hegseth said in remarks at the ceremony, thanking Vance and President Donald Trump.

In an official statement to the department, he said: “It is the privilege of a lifetime to lead the warriors of the Department of Defense, under the leadership of our Commander in Chief Donald J. Trump. We will put America First, and we will never back down.”

Hegseth, a former “Fox and Friends” television anchor, was nominated by Trump in November to lead the Defense Department.

In the time since his nomination was announced, Hegseth has been scrutinized for a number of accusations made against him, including those of sexual assault and financial mismanagement of two different veterans organizations.

Hegseth has fiercely denied the allegations. He appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee for a public hearing earlier this month, where he asserted to the panel that he was a “changed man.”

“I am not a perfect person, but redemption is real,” he told the panel.

Speaking to reporters while on a visit to Los Angeles, Trump said he was “very happy” with the vote, and said he was not aware of McConnell’s vote.

In a statement released while the vote was still going on, McConnell said that Hegseth’s desire to be a “change agent” was not enough to qualify him for the role of secretary of defense.

“Effective management of nearly 3 million military and civilian personnel, an annual budget of nearly $1 trillion, and alliances and partnerships around the world is a daily test with staggering consequences for the security of the American people and our global interests,” McConnell said in the statement. “Mr. Hegseth has failed, as yet, to demonstrate that he will pass this test. But as he assumes office, the consequences of failure are as high as they have ever been.”

Hegseth was confirmed by one of the narrowest Senate margins of any defense secretary in modern history. Most defense secretaries have been confirmed with broad bipartisan votes.

Lloyd Austin, former President Joe Biden’s pick for defense secretary, was confirmed in a 93-2 vote and Trump’s first pick for defense secretary in his first term, James Mattis, was confirmed in a 98-1 vote.

Before the vote, Hegseth arrived at the Capitol with his wife and children to watch the proceedings in person, a rare move for a Cabinet nominee.

With the Senate’s vote Friday, Hegseth becomes the third member of Trump’s team to be confirmed by the Senate, following Marco Rubio as secretary of state and John Ratcliffe, as CIA director.

During the same hearing, he affirmed his promise to restore the “warfighting ethos” of the DOD, touting his experience in the National Guard.

It was enough to win over the support of most Republicans in the Senate, including several of those who were initially skeptical.

“He articulated a clear vision of the Pentagon, and it was clear to anyone who listened that he is going to bring energy and fresh ideas to shake up the department’s stagnant bureaucracy,” Mississippi Sen. Roger Wicker, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a floor speech endorsing Hegseth on Thursday. “He will restore a warfighting ethos and relentlessly focused on the military’s core mission: to deter conflict and, if necessary, to win a war.”

The Senate Armed Services Committee advanced his nomination on a party-line vote on Monday. Then, in a closely watched moment on Thursday, Hegseth’s nomination passed a key test vote that set the table for Friday’s vote of final passage.

The nomination only required a simple majority in the Senate to advance, and it cleared the threshold narrowly, with only GOP backing.

Collins and Murkowski also voted no on that occasion.

In a statement, Murkowski explained that she could not support Hegseth due to concerns about this character and lack of experience.

“I believe that character is the defining trait required of the Secretary of Defense and must be prioritized without compromise,” Murkowski said in the post. “The leader of the Department of Defense must demonstrate and model the standards of behavior and character we expect of all servicemembers, and Mr. Hegseth’s nomination to the role poses significant concerns that I cannot overlook.”

Collins took issue with comments Hegseth made in the past about his belief that women should not serve in combat roles in the military. Though Hegseth has since changed his tune on that, Collins said she was unconvinced.

“I am also concerned about multiple statements, including some in the months just before he was nominated, that Mr. Hegseth has made about women serving in the military,” Collins said. “He and I had a candid conversation in December about his past statements and apparently evolving views. I am not convinced that his position on women serving in combat roles has changed.”

Trump expressed confidence in Hegseth ahead of the vote on Friday, though he added, “You’ll never know what’s going to happen.”

McConnell, the former GOP leader, and North Carolina Sen. Thom Tillis, ultimately cast votes in favor of advancing Hegseth’s nomination in the earlier test vote, although the president questioned whether McConnell will vote no on Hegseth Friday morning.

Tillis said he was still considering the most recent slate of allegations against Hegseth, leveled in an affidavit from his former sister-in-law Danielle Hegseth. In that affidavit, which ABC News obtained, Danielle Hegseth attested that Pete Hegseth’s ex-wife Samantha told her she “once hid in her closet from him because she feared for her personal safety” in the home they shared during their marriage. It also detailed episodes of binge drinking by Pete Hegseth.

An attorney for Pete Hegseth denied these allegations, and the claims of abuse were also rejected by his ex-wife.