Talking Points, Assemble! Democrat Women Launch Dishonest But Coordinated Attack In Hegseth Hearing

The Democrat women of the Senate’s Armed Services Committee were all clearly working from the same playbook during Tuesday morning’s hearing for decorated Army veteran Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Pentagon.

While there were a few substantive questions directed at Hegseth, who acquitted himself calmly and rationally throughout, the majority of the time allotted to the Democratic women was devoted to dishonest and repeated attempts to conflate comments Hegseth has made about women serving in direct combat roles with an outright opposition to all women in military service.

Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) pointed out the fact that women currently make up 18% of the United States military — and Hegseth agreed with her that they were a vital part of the mission.

Shaheen then referred to Hegseth’s comments from a podcast last year, when he 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.”

Hegseth has also said on more than one occasion that he absolutely respected and valued the women with whom he’d served, and that his concern was solely related to direct combat roles and the fact that in order to ensure more women met the qualifications to serve in such roles, standards were often lowered.

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Still, Shaheen pressed on as though he’d said there was no place for women in the military at all — and then suggested that he was only agreeing with her that women played a valuable role because he thought it might help his chances at getting confirmed.

“What I’m confused about Mr. Hegseth is, which is it?” Shaheen asked. “Why should women in our military, if you were the secretary of Defense, believe that they would have a fair shot at an equal opportunity to rise through the ranks if, on the one hand you say that women are not competent, they make our military less effective, and on the other hand, you say, ‘Oh no, now that I’ve been nominated to be the secretary of Defense, I’ve changed my view.’”

Sen. Jeanne Shaheen presses Pete Hegseth on conflicting statements regarding his stance on women in the military.

Hegseth: "It's not about the capabilities of men and women, it's about standards."

Shaheen: "I appreciate your 11th hour conversion." https://t.co/SURuMFpSHY pic.twitter.com/NB8dBjMMko

— ABC News Politics (@ABCPolitics) January 14, 2025

Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) ripped a page from the same playbook, claiming, “For 12 years, you were quite open about your views, and your views were consistently the same: women are inferior soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, and guardians. Then on November 9, 2024, just 32 days after your last public comments saying that women absolutely should not be in combat, you declare that ‘some of our greatest warriors are women.'”

“I very much appreciate you bringing up my comments from 2013, because for me, this issue has always been about standards,” Hegseth replied — and every time he attempted to clarify his position further, Warren interrupted, talking over him and substituting her own assessment for his.

Warren also ultimately suggested that Hegseth had only just changed his views upon receiving a nomination to serve in Trump’s cabinet: “I have heard of deathbed conversions but this is the first I’ve heard of a nomination conversion.”

WATCH:

Sen. Elizabeth Warren questions Pete Hegseth about women in combat roles, telling him "I've heard of deathbed conversions, but this is the first time I've heard of a nomination conversion." pic.twitter.com/auFB1Jif2U

— The Post Millennial (@TPostMillennial) January 14, 2025

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) raised her voice, repeatedly scolding Hegseth based solely on the false equivalence between his actual position and the one she and her Democratic colleagues had fabricated for him.

“In all of these other circumstances, you denigrated active duty service members. We have hundreds – HUNDREDS of women who are currently in the infantry. … You degrade them. You say, we need moms but not in the military, especially in combat units,” she complained, adding, “You’re basically saying women, after they have children, can’t ever serve in the military in a combat role. It’s — it’s — it’s a — it’s a silly thing to say. It’s a silly thing to say, beneath the position that you are aspiring to. To denigrate LGBTQ service members is a mistake.”

“Please explain these types of statements because they’re brutal and they’re mean and they disrespect men and women who are willing to die for this country,” she demanded.

WATCH:

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand yells at Hegseth for statements about not wanting to have women serve in combat roles: "We have hundreds – HUNDREDS of women who are currently in the infantry…You degrade them. You say, we need moms but not in the military, especially in combat units. pic.twitter.com/LhNKrD4FoV

— Julio Rosas (@Julio_Rosas11) January 14, 2025

Senator Mazie Hirono (D-HI), in addition to accusing Hegseth of being willing to shoot protesters and lead a military takeover of Greenland, cited Hegseth’s “inflammatory statements” and demanded to know, “If confirmed, will you commit to defend, not denigrate our troops?”

Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), who lost her legs in war, held up her copy of The Soldier’s Creed as a visual aid and suggested that somehow Hegseth was not up to the same standard she claimed for herself.

WATCH:

Nauseating meltdowns, down to the prepared remarks and sighs that come off like stage cues from Illinois Democrat Senator Tammy Duckworth, arguing he's somehow not emblematic of the Soldier's Creed (unlike her b/c of her own service and war injuries)

Disgusting. pic.twitter.com/IGJGLyUw5V

— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) January 14, 2025

Hegseth clarified his position on several occasions during the hearing, but it did nothing to dissuade the Democrats from talking over him — perhaps in the hopes that no one would hear him pointing out how disingenuous they were — and pushing their own agenda in place of his words.

WATCH:

Incoming Secretary of Defense @PeteHegseth: I'm incredibly grateful for the two women who've served our military in uniform… When I'm talking about that issue, it's not about the capabilities of men and women, it's about standards — standards that we have seen eroded. pic.twitter.com/Q4VPYsVFfv

— Trump War Room (@TrumpWarRoom) January 14, 2025