Just a month ago, during a Nov. 10 interview on the “Shawn Ryan Show” (two days before Trump nominated him), Hegseth said, “I’m straight up just saying we should not have women in combat roles. It hasn’t made us more effective, hasn’t made us more lethal, has made fighting more complicated.”
In 2013, Hegseth said in a Fox News appearance that women should not serve in combat roles, because the military had not yet solved the problem of sexual assault within its ranks.
“The military has a not-so-secret problem in some ways with sexual assault and some of the things that have happened with women in the military. This is an open secret that has not been figured out. So before we go about addressing that and figuring that out, why are we opening up something that we don't know how to control or implement?” Hegseth said.
After the Obama administration changed the rules in 2015 allowing women to serve in all combat roles, Hegseth expressed displeasure.
“Another example is military sexual assault, which is a problem. We shouldn't be having military sexual assault. Everybody understands that. We need to be taking care of it. You think you bring women into infantry, different units, you might exacerbate that a little bit? I'm not saying that's anybody's fault, but that's an unintended consequence of that priority also,” Hegseth said in a 2016 speech to a conservative group.
Female veterans have spoken out about Hegseth’s divisive comments.
U.S. Army veteran Elizabeth Beggs told CNN, “I believe it’s incredibly divisive to water down and diminish the accomplishments that I and other women have made serving in these roles, not just to women, but to men who’ve gone through the same courses and hit the same standards, especially in a time where we should be unifying.”
Elisa Smithers, an Army National Guard veteran who was deployed to Iraq in 2005 during the war there, told the outlet, “At the end of the day, in order for us to be a dynamic and agile force and the great military that we are, we’ve got to have diversity. And that includes women in our force.”
Hegseth’s appearance on “Hannity” is part of a media blitz from the former Fox News host and commentator to save his troubled nomination. Hegseth has written an op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, appeared on a podcast, and deployed his mother to speak on his behalf on Fox.
The public-relations campaign may be working too. Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst, a key Republican vote, has now indicated she may back Hegseth.
Nonetheless, the growing controversy around Hegseth has become part of a larger story of Trump choosing unqualified individuals for key positions, reflecting poorly on his decision-making ability before he has even been sworn in.
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