Donald Trump’s transition team was taken by surprise when details about the sexual assault allegations against Pete Hegseth, the president-elect’s defense secretary nominee, became public this week.
In yet another example of the transition team being blindsided by claims about Hegseth, members of the team were reportedly startled to see a California police report go public on Wednesday, detailing the 2017 night on which Hegseth was accused of sexually assaulting a woman.
The heavily redacted report from the Monterey Police Department details two different accounts from a night of drinking at a hotel bar in 2017 that ultimately ended in a sexual encounter between Hegseth and an unnamed woman.
The report arrives nearly a week after Trump tapped Hegseth to head the armed forces and reports emerged revealing Hegseth paid a settlement to the woman who accused him of assault.
Members of the Trump transition team were reportedly unaware of the settlement, which led to concerns about whether Hegseth was still fit to be the defense secretary nominee. They were dealt another surprising blow on Wednesday evening when the Monterey Police Department released the redacted report and revealed Hegseth was given a copy in March 2021.
“This is another instance of people being blindsided, so I think there’s rising frustration there,” a person familiar with the situation told the Wall Street Journal.
“If this continues to be a drumbeat and the press coverage continues to be bad, particularly on TV, then I think there is a real chance that he loses Trump’s confidence,” the person added.
The Hegseth controversy could unfold similarly to the Matt Gaetz situation. After being tapped as attorney general nominee, negative press attention due to allegations of statutory rape and an unreleased House Ethics Committee report on those claims led to Gaetz removing himself from the nomination.
Details from the police report on Hegseth contain accounts from the former Fox News host, his accuser, a nurse who examined the accuser at a clinic, and the reporting police officer.
It also contains text messages and call logs but does not include video surveillance footage.
The unnamed accuser claims she met Hegseth at a hotel bar and believes something was slipped into her drink. She alleges that the two left the bar and got into a verbal argument at the hotel pool which prompted hotel staff to intervene. Eventually, the two went to Hegseth’s hotel room where she claims he forced himself on her.
Hegseth told police he did not recall a verbal argument between the two and that the sexual encounter was consensual.
Ultimately, the Monterey County District Attorney chose not to bring charges because they did not have proof beyond a reasonable doubt. The report does not conclude the allegations are false.
When questioned about the report, Hegseth told journalists on Thursday that “the matter was fully investigated and I was completely cleared.”
A lawyer for Hegseth confirmed that the former Fox News host paid the woman a settlement to prevent her from coming forward with a lawsuit that could damage his reputation. That was reportedly not made clear to the Trump transition team, according to the WSJ.
For now, the Trump team is continuing to back Hegseth.
Karoline Leavitt, a spokesperson for Trump and press secretary nominee, said in a statement, “This report corroborates what Mr. Hegseth’s attorneys have said all along: the incident was fully investigated, and no charges were filed because police found the allegations to be false.”
