by Jason Cohen
CNN senior political commentator Scott Jennings said Democratic senators’ “mudslinging” strategy backfired in President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, on Tuesday. confirmation hearing.
Virginia Democratic Senator Tim Kaine attended the hearing accusing Hegseth on infidelity and New York Democratic Senator Kirsten Gillibrand lectures nominated for eight minutes about women serving in the military. Jenningsin “CNN News Central” – he praised Hegseth composure, describing him as “calm, cool and collected,” while maintaining that the Democratic senators’ behavior likely improved Hegseth’s chances of confirmation.
“Long story short, I think Pete Hegseth kicked their asses today. I mean, it wasn’t even close. They didn’t put a glove on Hegseth. No errors. Calm, cool, collected. I mean, before this even started, we had this sort of Code Pink thing, you know, a freak show of protesters trying to disrupt the hearing,” Jennings said. “This is the Democrat base, by the way, which probably explains why the Democrats on the committee behaved in such a bizarre and unprofessional manner. I was appalled at the way these senators handled themselves and some of the issues in terms of questioning.”
“I mean, Tim Kaine sounded like a sexual deviant during the Pete Hegseth audition. [Connecticut Sen. Richard] Blumenthal, who lied about his service in Vietnam, questioning Hegseth’s qualifications. You had [New York Sen. Kirsten] Gillibrand, you had it [Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth] Warren, you had it [Hawaii Sen. Mazie] Hirono goes on nonsensical tirades on various topics,” he continued. “[Maine Sen.] Angus King clearly doesn’t understand what it’s like to fight terrorism. Over and over again. Hegseth remained composed in the face of this emotionless interrogation. They made him look good today. It would be challenging for a Republican to vote against Hegseth after today’s inappropriate mudslinging of Democrats.”
Also, Democratic Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth he shouted in Hegseth during the hearing when he tried to answer her question about the audit.
“Have you audited any organization, yes or no? I don’t want a long answer. Yes or no, have you audited any organization you have led?” Duckworth asked.
“Senator, in both organizations I have led, we have always been fully financially responsible for the money we have,” Hegseth replied.
The defense secretary nominee added that his organizational leadership had been “completely mischaracterized,” but Duckworth shouted at him as he continued speaking.
“Yes or no, have you conducted an audit? Yes or no, have you conducted an audit? Yes or no? What are you afraid of?” – asked the senator. “Can’t you answer this question? Yes or no, have you conducted an audit? Don’t you know this answer?”
Watch full segment: :
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Jason Cohen is a reporter at the Daily Caller News Foundation.
“Pete Hegseth” painting by CSPAN.
