The New York Times shared a 2018 email concerning former Fox News host Pete Hegseth's mother in which she calls him "despicable" and accuses him of repeatedly mistreating women.
Days after President-elect Donald Trump won the 2024 election, the Pentagon was dumbfounded when Trump selected Hegseth, the Fox and Friends weekend co-host and former Army National Guard officer, as his nominee for U.S. Secretary of Defense for the incoming administration.
In addition to being inexperienced in government, let alone global defense, it came to light that Hegseth had faced a sexual assault allegation in 2017 by a woman who claimed she had nonconsensual sex with him in a hotel room, which Hegseth denied.
Hegseth's mother, Penelope Hegseth, was aware of her son's history of mistreating women, and it all came to light on Friday.
According to the New York Times, she wrote a scathing takedown of her son amid divorce proceedings with his second wife Samantha Hegseth in 2018.
In an email, Penelope Hegseth copied Samantha Deering and railed against her son “after listening to the way [Hegseth] made Samantha feel today.”
She continued:
“You are an abuser of women—that is the ugly truth and 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."
Screenshots from the article featuring the email were shared and posted to X (formerly Twitter).
You can see the screenshots of the correspondence, below.
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Hegseth has been married three times.
His first wife was his high school girlfriend, Meredith Schwarz, who he divorced in 2009 after admitting to several infidelities.
He married Samantha Deering in 2010, and they had three children.
While still married to Deering, Hegseth had a daughter with Fox executive producer Jennifer Rauchet in August 2017. Deering filed for divorce a month later, but it wasn't finalized for another ten months.
Hegseth married Rauchet in August 2019. She has three children from her first marriage.
It was during his divorce from Deering that Hegseth's mother expressed her disappointment over her son's abusive history.
"It's time for someone (I wish it was a strong man) to stand up to your abusive behavior and call it out, especially against women," she said.
Penelope Hegseth added:
"We still love you, but we are broken by your behavior and lack of character. I don't want to write emails like this and never thought I would."
"If it damages our relationship further, then so be it, but at least I have said my piece."
She insisted on not receiving a response, claiming "You twist and abuse everything I say anyway."
The message concluded with:
"On behalf of all 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…"
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Social media users were shaking their heads.
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Some were unfazed by the controversial cabinet pick by Trump, who was found liable for sexual abuse in journalist E. Jean Carroll's 2022 federal lawsuit.
Trump’s Communications Director, Steven Cheung, told CNN that Penelope Hegseth's letter obtained by the Times was “an out-of-context snippet," adding:
"The New York Times and other outlets are despicable for using an out-of-context snippet of an illegally-obtained private email exchange between a mother and her son that does not accurately reflect the entirety of the conversation."
“In subsequent emails, Mrs. Hegseth expressed regret for her emotional message and apologized.”
According to a 2017 document released by the Monterey Police Department regarding Hegseth's sexual assault allegation, the alleged victim recalled:
“Something may have been slipped into her drink, as she cannot remember most of the night’s events.”
She claimed the incident occurred in 2017 at a conference organized by the California Federation of Republican Women at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa.
She told police that Hegseth took away her phone, physically blocked her from leaving a hotel room, and sexually assaulted her.
The former Fox host paid his accuser as part of a non-disclosure settlement agreement.
In a statement, Hegseth's attorney Timothy Parlatore said the accused paid “a significantly reduced amount" during the "Me Too" movement because he didn't want to lose his job at Fox News if the news of his sexual assault allegation became public.
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