Pete Hegseth
President-elect Donald Trump, who has been accused of sexual misconduct by 26 women, has appointed at least three men to his cabinet who have also been accused of sex crimes.
Trump’s 2016 electoral victory is often cited as an inciting event for the MeToo movement, a social phenomenon that resulted in the ousting of abusive men, particularly sexual predators, from positions of power and influence. For some, Trump’s return to power and his embrace of alleged sex offenders is seen as a repudiation of that cause.
On November 12, Trump chose Fox News host Pete Hegseth to be Secretary of Defense. Hegseth is a decorated veteran, but otherwise has no experience in foreign policy or national security.
Hegseth was investigated for sexual assault by the Monterey Police Department in California in 2017. A Republican operative claimed Hegseth raped her following an event at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa. Hegseth’s accuser went to a hospital following the alleged incident and was tested with a rape kit that detected the presence of semen.
Hegseth does not deny having a sexual encounter with his accuser, but maintains that it was consensual. Hegseth entered a settlement agreement with his accuser in February 2020, in which she was paid an undisclosed sum to not go public with the allegations.
No criminal charges were ever filed against Hegseth.
Trump nominated Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz to be Attorney General on November 13. Gaetz attended law school and had a brief stint as a lawyer, but, like Hegseth, has minimal relevant experience for the top law enforcement job.
The Department of Justice investigated in 2021 whether Gaetz was involved in the sex trafficking of a 17 year old girl. Despite evidence that Gaetz had sex with the victim, the trafficking investigation was dropped in 2023.
The House Ethics Committee launched its own investigation into Gaetz in 2021. The inquiry was supported by both Democratic and Republican lawmakers, some of whom claimed Gaetz had personally boasted to them about engaging in deviant sexual behavior.
In October 2023, Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin claimed Gaetz had shown fellow legislators photos and videos of women he had slept with and would “brag about how he would crush ED (erectile dysfunction) medicine and chase it with an energy drink so he could go all night.”
The ethics committee was preparing to publish the findings of its investigation when Trump nominated Gaetz to be Attorney General. Gaetz abruptly resigned from Congress the same day. Under House rules, the report is not required to be released if Gaetz is not serving in Congress.
Politicoreported on November 18 that a woman testified to the ethics committee that she witnessed Gaetz having sex with an underage girl. Other witnesses said Gaetz attended several sex parties in 2017 and 2018 where illegal drugs were used.
Gaetz denies these allegations.
Senators from both parties have called for the Ethics Committee’s findings to be made public, but House Speaker Mike Johnson has signaled he will prevent that from happening.
Trump nominated lawyer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to run the Department of Health and Human Services on Nov. 14. Kennedy initially ran for president in 2024 as a Democrat before switching to become an independent. He suspended his campaign in August and endorsed Trump.
In July, Vanity Fair reported that Kennedy had allegedly groped his children’s babysitter in 1998. Kennedy denied the allegations, but also sent a text message to his accuser apologizing for any behavior he engaged in that made her feel uncomfortable.
At the time of the alleged incident, Kennedy reportedly kept a “sex diary” in which he detailed extramarital affairs with 37 different women. In excerpts published by the New York Post, Kennedy wrote that he was a slave to “wild impulses” and “powerful demons.” It has been suggested that Kennedy’s serial philandering contributed to the suicide of his ex-wife Mary Richardson in 2012.
Kennedy is currently married to actress Cheryl Hines. In September, a political reporter for New York magazine said she had an emotional affair with Kennedy while he was campaigning for president. Kennedy denies this allegation as well.
Trump is reportedly considering appointing business executive and Republican donor Charles Herbster to be his Secretary of Agriculture. Hebster ran unsuccessfully for the Republican nomination for Governor of Nebraska in 2014 and 2022.
During his 2022 campaign, nine women accused Hebster of forcibly groping and kissing them. Hebster claims all of his accusers are lying.
Hegseth, Gaetz, Kennedy, and, if nominated, Hebster, would all need to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate in order to serve in Trump’s cabinet. Trump has pressured the Senate to let him do recess appointments, which would allow him to install cabinet officials without senate approval.
On May 9, a New York jury ruled that Trump had sexually abused writer E. Jean Carroll in the dressing room of a Bloomingdale’s department store in 1996. Trump was ordered to pay Carroll $5 million in damages. That amount increased when a separate jury ruled that Trump had defamed Carroll by accusing her of lying about the incident.
Several of Trump’s advisers have also been accused of sexual assault or misconduct.
Corey Lewandowski was an adviser on Trump’s 2016 and 2024 campaigns. In 2017, a woman filed a police report alleging that Lewandowski slapped her buttocks at a holiday party.
Billionaire Elon Musk was an informal adviser on Trump’s 2024 campaign and has reportedly played a role in staffing Trump’s cabinet. In June, the Wall Street Journal reported that Musk had sexual relationships with several of his employees, engaged in sexual harassment, and once exposed himself to a flight attendant.
Musk denies these allegations.
Reprinted with permission from American Journal News.
