Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., said in a release this morning that Danielle Hegseth, the former sister-in-law of defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth, was interviewed by the FBI in December as part of the background investigation into Hegseth, but ”details of this testimony were not included in the final background check briefing provided by the Trump Transition Team in January.”
”Accordingly, Senator Reed directly requested this individual recount the testimony that she had provided to the FBI,” the release said.
Senators, including Reed, received an affidavit from Danielle Hegseth yesterday that alleged Pete Hegseth’s second wife told her that his behavior caused her to fear for her safety.
“As I have said for months, the reports of Mr. Hegseth’s history of alleged sexual assault, alcohol abuse, and public misconduct necessitate an exhaustive background investigation,” Reed said. ”I have been concerned that the background check process has been inadequate, and this affidavit confirms that fact.”
Reed, the ranking member on the Senate Armed Services Committee, added that the sworn affidavit ”documents a disturbing pattern of abuse and misconduct by Mr. Hegseth. This behavior would disqualify any servicemember from holding any leadership position in the military, much less being confirmed as the Secretary of Defense.”
The White House didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on why the Trump transition team didn’t include the testimony in the final background investigation for Hegseth that was transmitted to Capitol Hill.
Through his lawyer, Hegseth denied the allegations that he was abusive toward his ex-wife.
“Sam has never alleged that there was any abuse, she signed court documents acknowledging that there was no abuse and recently reaffirmed the same during her FBI interview,” Hegseth’s lawyer, Tim Parlatore, said in a statement.
In an email to NBC News earlier this week, Hegseth’s ex-wife, Samantha Hegseth, denied the allegations in the affidavit, saying,“There was no physical abuse in my marriage. This is the only further statement I will make to you, I have let you know that I am not speaking and will not speak on my marriage to Pete. Please respect this decision.”
In 2021, as part of their divorce proceedings, both agreed that neither parent claimed to be a victim of domestic abuse.