So, it looks like Donald Trump has been on a shopping spree in the weirdest store possible — a hall of mirrors. And what’s he pulling off the shelves? Not just any old reflections. He’s snagging the most distorted, funhouse versions he can find, all to fill the echoing halls of his Cabinet.
There’s Pete Hegseth, a man who literally embodies the adage, “Dirt doesn’t hurt,” and then takes it a step too far into the realm of biological bravado. Yup, Trump’s choice for Secretary of Defense claims he hadn’t washed his hands in a decade because, according to him, germs are not, like, a real thing if you can’t see them. But it turns out that poor hygiene might be the least of Hegseth’s worries.
The New York Times recently published a bombshell email from Hegseth’s own mother, Penelope, written back in 2018. In it, she lays bare her son’s alleged mistreatment of women, stating, “On behalf of all the women (and I know it’s many) you have abused in some way, I say … get some help and take an honest look at yourself.” She went on to eviscerate her son’s character, declaring that he’s a lying, cheating, womanizing scumbag who uses his power and ego to belittle and abuse women. She even had the gall to say it pained and embarrassed her to admit this about her own flesh and blood.
“I have no respect for any man that belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around and uses women for his own power and ego. You are that man (and have been for years) and as your mother, it pains me and embarrasses me to say that, but it is the sad, sad truth.”
Ouch.
When your own mother is calling you out for being a womanizer and a liar, you know things are bad. But doesn’t this sound familiar? Misogyny, deception, power trips — it’s almost as if Trump and Hegseth were cut from the same sleazy cloth! Birds of a feather, indeed.
The scathing rebuke from Mama Hegseth can be traced back to the fallout from a particularly messy divorce between Pete and his wife, Samantha Deering. The divorce, finalized in 2017, was fueled by Pete’s infidelity, leading to a contentious and costly settlement. Deering’s discovery of the affair prompted her to file for divorce, and the subsequent proceedings ended with Pete being ordered to pay up to $20,000 a month in spousal support and child maintenance.
Of course, Hegseth’s mom tried to walk back her fiery email, calling it a heat-of-the-moment mistake. In a follow-up interview with The Times on Nov. 29, she claimed she wrote the scathing message “in anger, with emotion” during her son’s messy divorce. She now insists that her previous statements were untrue and that Hegseth is a “good father, husband.” Too late though — the cat’s out of the bag, and the stain on Hegseth’s character isn’t something you can just scrub away.
Remember the 2017 rape allegation he settled out of court? Yeah, that’s not going away anytime — a whopping 22-page dossier of new allegations just landed with a thud. While he vehemently denies the allegations and no charges were filed, the fact that he admitted to paying the woman off to protect his cushy Fox News gig doesn’t exactly scream “innocent.” Add to that his views on women in the military and his crusade against “woke” generals, and you’ve got a recipe for a Pentagon leader who might as well be steering the ship with a blindfold and a dartboard. The role of Secretary of Defense is one that demands integrity, leadership, and a deep respect for the men and women who serve our country. Hegseth’s track record suggests he possesses none of these qualities.