LOS AGNELES.–President-elect Donald Trump’s, 78, 44-year-old nominee Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth has been hounded by the fake news for an alleged sexual encounter in 2017, Hegseth insists was a consensual sexual encounter. Monterey, California police didn’t press charges views the facts presented to them in 2017 not a criminal sex abuse case. Yet the fake news has taken on Hegseth with a fury not seen since Christine Blasey Ford accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual assault as some murky time during her high school days. Christine Blasey Ford has the whole nation up in arms during the height of the MeToo Movement, where statutes of limitations were removed off allegations of sexual assault. Women during Kavanaugh’s confirmation hearing said they believed Christine Blasey Ford, including Ethic’s Committee Chairwoman Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.).
When it comes to allegations, the fake news has no problems harassing Trump’s appointees, not because there’s merit in their allegations but because Hegseth is a Republican with Democrats furious they lost the 2024 election. Only way Democrats can lash out now is by harassing Trump’s nominees, taking 24/7 about their alleged crimes, even though, in Hegseth’s case, no criminal charges were ever filed. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) wants Hegseth to release his accuser from her non-disclosure agreement [NDA] so she can come to the Senate Ethics Committee to give her story. But what’s her story? She recalls saying “no” to Hegseth while they engaged in a consensual sexual encounter. Graham should not be pandering to the fake news, leaving the whole issue alone. If the Monterey police refused to file charges, that’s all the Ethics Committee needs to know.
Hegseth’s attorney Tim Palatore said Hegseth settle with his accuser because he didn’t want the case to affect his employment at Fox News. “If people have an allegation to make, come forward and make it like they did in Kavanaugh. We’ll decide whether or not it’s credible,” Graham said. “If she wants to go and talk about it, she can do it. I mean, certainly she would do it at her own peril of a further defamation lawsuit,” Parlatore said. Salacious gossip has been the stock-and-trade of the fake news, where they seek any innuendo or gossip to sabotage any of Trump’s nominees. When it comes to Hegseth, the Monterey police did not press charges because it didn’t meet probable cause standards, something Democrats and the press like to do when they try-and-convict political enemies in the broadcast and print media. Hegseth is just another target for the fake news.
Whatever allegations were made, they are seven years old and only come up now because Hegseth has been nominated for Defense Secretary. CNN claims that Hegseth’s attorney Tim Parlatore told host Kaitlan Collins that the NDA “no longer has any force in effect,” because it has been breached, meaning that either side could talk about the incident. CNN would like nothing more that put Hegseth’s accuser on the air to besmirch the nominee’s reputation before his goes into Senate hearings. Senators in Congress likely to ask questions of Hegseth say they believe his story that the 2017 encounter was indeed consensual, warranting no criminal charges as determined by Monterey police. Yet to CNN what better way can they get back at Trump for shellacking their candidate Vice President Kamala Harris? CNN promoted Kamala’s 2024 campaign, doing everything to defeat Trump.
Fakes news likes to try-and-convict political enemies on the airwaves, regardless of how their public discussions influence future trials. When it comes to Hegseth, CNN has a dual ax to grind, one that he’s Trump’s nominee and two that he’s a Fox News contributor and host in the competitive cable new business. It’s no accident that CNN and MSNBC, both anti-Trump networks, did everything possible in the 2024 presidential race to back Kamala and denounce Trump. So, when their Nielsen Ratings or viewership was cut in half, CNN and MSNBC had to take drastic measures to reclaim viewership, this time opposing Trump nominees like Hegseth and former 43-year-old Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-Hawaii) now accused by the fake news of having inappropriate relationship with 72-year-old Russian President Vladimir Putin and deposed 59-year-old Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Today’s fake news has nothing to report from the failed Biden administration who they supported over the last four years. When it comes to the Ukraine War, Biden has had 100% backing from the fake news, only recently admitting that there could be a future political settlement with Trump now involved. Why the fake news backs the Ukraine War is anyone’s guess. You’d think any news organization would want to promote peace over war considering the costs, but, more importantly, the human toll on Ukraine and Russia. Graham let the fake news know where things stand as Chairman of the Senate Ethics Committee. “He’s given me his side of the story. It makes sense to me. I believe him,” Graham said. Unless somebody’s willing to come forward, I think he’s gonna get through,” Graham said. Fake news has closed ranks to undermine Hegseth and other Trump nominees.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
