Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s nominee to be secretary of protection, promoted a baseless conspiracy concept in regards to the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol.
CNN studies that in a 2021 look on former Speaker of the Home Newt Gingrich’s podcast, Hegseth promoted the declare that the attackers had been really members of the leftist collective antifa disguised as Trump supporters.
“There are reports, you know, in the New York Post and elsewhere. And just from, you know, common sense, that antifa folks took advantage of this to try to get to the front and try to agitate and create openings for themselves,” Hegseth stated.
Hegseth additionally alleged that he had seen proof proving the conspiracy concept as a result of “You can see the helmets where there’s a Donald Trump bumper sticker on the back, quickly put on it so they could look like they wanted to stop the steal. But what they really wanted to do was further the narrative.”
The declare is fake. The individuals who attacked the Capitol constructing had been, like Hegseth, supporters of Donald Trump they usually had been making an attempt to halt the certification of President Joe Biden’s election win. Trump was later impeached (for the second time) for inciting the assault at a rally earlier on that day.
The newly revealed conspiracy promotion echoes a lot of the world view of Trump. Trump has floated pardons for his supporters who’ve been convicted for breaching the Capitol. Equally, Trump has lengthy been a backer of conspiracy theories—most prominently the false, racist “birther” conspiracy that claimed former President Barack Obama was ineligible for workplace.
It’s unclear if Hegseth nonetheless stands behind the made-up story he promoted. In latest conferences with senators, Hegseth has tried to distance himself from different controversial statements he has made throughout his time as a pundit for Fox Information. These remarks embrace his opposition to ladies serving in fight roles and his argument that permitting homosexual individuals to brazenly serve within the army is a part of a “Marxist” plot.
Hegseth’s nomination has been plagued with disturbing revelations which have referred to as into query his character and competence for a place that will be in command of the complete U.S. army. Hegseth has been accused of sexual assault, public drunkenness, and monetary mismanagement of a conservative veterans’ nonprofit group.
Regardless of this collection of disclosures, Republicans within the Senate have continued to voice help for the nominee. However in a latest ballot by Civiqs for Each day Kos, 48% of registered voters opposed his nomination whereas solely 42% help Trump’s decide.
