‘He Has My Support’: Hegseth Nabs Another High-Profile Senate Endorsement

Pete Hegseth, tapped by President-elect Donald Trump to lead the Defense Department, received another endorsement this week, signaling growing support for his nomination.

Alabama GOP Senator Katie Boyd Britt expressed her backing for Hegseth after a one-on-one meeting, highlighting his alignment with Trump’s strategy of “peace through strength” and his intent to reshape the Pentagon’s priorities.

“He is committed to putting our warfighters in the best position and returning the Pentagon’s focus to our force’s lethality,” Britt stated on X. “We also had a great discussion about the importance of Alabama to our national defense.”

She added, “During our conversation, I asked direct questions about allegations reported by the media, which Pete answered with candor and transparency. Based on our meeting and his answers, he has my support.”

Earlier on Thursday, North Dakota Senator Kevin Cramer, a Republican member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, also voiced his confidence in Hegseth.

“I give him the benefit of the doubt,” Cramer remarked. “I am ready to be supportive of getting him to that point. I’m ready to get him in front of the committee. I did warn him. I said, ‘you know, not everybody on the committee is as friendly as I am,’ which I don’t think surprised him. But I also said, there’s nobody on the committee that doesn’t earn our respect.”

Cramer emphasized his expectations for Hegseth, saying, “My commitment I was looking for was that he won’t drink, he won’t touch alcohol, and that he’d be ready for a phone call at 3 in the afternoon or 3 in the morning and every hour in between. I thought that was a good way to put it.”

Meanwhile, Tennessee GOP Senator Bill Hagerty, during a CNN interview, confirmed his support for the embattled nominee, delivering a morale boost amid intra-party skepticism regarding Hegseth’s qualifications to lead the Pentagon.

“Well, I’d say this: I was just with Pete meeting with a large group of House members, and he had an ovation that was resounding,” Hagerty explained. “I think that Pete is, as people get to know him again, as people get to see his deliberation, his deliberate stance on trying to repair the Pentagon, try to fix our recruiting crisis, our retention crisis, I think people are overwhelmingly supportive of him.”

Hagerty conveyed optimism about the confirmation process. “And I think that’s going to continue to move in the right direction,” he concluded.

Despite increasing allegations of sexual and personal misconduct, Hegseth signaled his determination to remain in the race. Speaking to reporters during a hallway interview at the U.S. Capitol, he dismissed any thoughts of withdrawing.

“I spoke to the President-elect this morning. He said keep going, keep fighting… Why would I back down? I’ve always been a fighter,” Hegseth affirmed.

When asked directly about stepping aside amid the allegations, the former Fox News contributor and combat veteran stated his focus remained on meeting with senators to secure his nomination.

Trump announced Hegseth as his choice for Secretary of Defense shortly after defeating Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential election.