Washington
Cnn
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Pete Hegseth, President Donald Trump’s candidate at the head of the Pentagon, told the Senate Armed Services Commission that he had paid $ 50,000 as part of a confidentiality agreement to a woman who claimed to have assaulted her Sexually, according to documents obtained by CNN.
In a written correspondence with the committee, Hegseth answered a question from the Massachusetts Democrat Senator, Elizabeth Warren, concerning the allegation of sexual assault, which he publicly denied and said that it was an “allegation of nuisance”.
Hegseth, who has never been accused of a crime linked to the Incident of Monterey, California in 2017, said that he had entered into a settlement agreement including a confidentiality clause with her accuser in order to prevent him from trying to tarnish your Fox career. News host with allegations he says false.
Hegseth lawyer Tim Parlatore confirmed to CNN in November that his client had paid the accuser for the alleged incident. But the amount in dollars, reported for the first time by the Associated Press, had not been made public until Hegseth reveals it to the committee.
Parlatore again called the claims of the accusers of false accusers on Thursday. “As we said from the start, these were false allegations that we settled for a nuisance value, much lower than what it would have cost to defend,” said the lawyer in a declaration to CNN.
Hegseth is about to obtain confirmation from the Senate after having overcome a key procedural obstacle by a vote of 51 against 49. Two Republicans – Senators Lisa Murkowski from Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine – voted against appointment, citing his character and qualifications for the post.
During his confirmation hearing last week, HegSeth was asked about a series of allegations that have emerged since he was announced as the choice of Trump’s defense secretary, in particular the alleged incident of sexual assault Following a speech during a conference organized by a group of republican women, behavior at work. and his comments on women in the army.
According to a police report obtained by CNN, the woman told the police that Hegseth had physically prevented her from leaving a hotel room, had taken her phone and then assaulted her sexually even if she “often remembered to have said “no”. Hegseth told the police that their meeting was consensual and that he had repeatedly assured that the woman “was comfortable with what was happening between them.”
Hegseth has also been accused of poor management of funds in a non -profit organization that he led, and in another organization, former employees complained about his excessive alcohol consumption and the treatment for women’s staff, According to the New Yorker.
A longtime producer of Fox News told CNN, years before Hegseth became the choice of Trump, that his habit of drinking was a “secret of the polichinelle” on the set of “Fox & Friends” and that he Has more than once noticed cans of beer in the trash cans of the Hegseth office.
Hegseth has already admitted that he was drinking a lot during his transition from military life to civilian life, but he denies having an alcohol problem.
He was also asked about his previous comments suggesting that women should not be used in combat roles.
Questioned during his confirmation hearing about these remarks, Hegseth told the senatorial committee that women make “incredible contributions” to the army, arguing that his comments questioning women serving in combat were linked to standards and ‘Army preparation state.
“When I talk about this question, it is not the capacities of men and women; This is a matter of standards, “he said.
This story has been updated with additional details.