(Julianna Frieman, Headline USA) U.S. Capitol Police officers picked up and carried out a screaming protester from Tuesday’s Senate confirmation hearing of President-elect Donald Trump’s defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth.
Multiple Code Pink activists interrupted Hegseth’s hearing, holding signs characterizing the former Fox News personality a “religious extremist” and a supporter of “Christian Jihad.” One by one, authorities plucked protesters from the room as they yelled about “murdering babies.”
Some of the Hegseth protestors on Cap Hill today: pic.twitter.com/ZckZuAy6ku
— Mary Margaret Olohan (@MaryMargOlohan) January 14, 2025
Four protestors have been ejected from the Hegseth hearing room so far. pic.twitter.com/VXod6AxXXD
— Manu Raju (@mkraju) January 14, 2025
Video showed officers quickly carry a male demonstrator out the door before Hegseth continued his opening statement.
“The Department of Defense under Donald Trump will achieve peace through strength. And in pursuing these America First National security goals, will remain patriotically apolitical and stridently constitutional,” Hegseth told senators, bashing the Biden administration for injecting politics into military matters.
“We are not Republicans. We are not Democrats,” he added. “We are American warriors.”
Pete Hegseth Wows the Room with a Powerful Opening Statement
Hegseth’s words came after multiple interruptions from protesters, turning a chaotic confirmation hearing into a masterclass in resilience.
“The Department of Defense under Donald Trump will achieve peace through… pic.twitter.com/2IwSxF9StF
— The Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) January 14, 2025
There was “a striking difference” between the few leftist protesters that infiltrated Hegseth’s hearing and the hundreds of U.S. military veterans marching in support of Trump’s defense pick in Washington, D.C., Fox News Chief Foreign Correspondent Trey Yingst identified.
A striking difference in the audience between the protesters dressed in pink costumes and the U.S. military veterans there to support Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth.
— Trey Yingst (@TreyYingst) January 14, 2025
Veterans rally on Capitol Hill this morning to show support for Pete Hegseth as Secretary of Defense ahead of his Senate confirmation hearing. pic.twitter.com/h950B8RSRS
— America (@america) January 14, 2025
Various Democrat senators on the Armed Services Committee tried to paint Hegseth as being drunk on the job, an allegation that surfaced from a bogus, anonymously sourced NBC News report.
They also attempted to smear Hegseth as an enemy of women by citing his previously expressed concerns about women in combat roles and the former Fox News host’s history with false allegations of sexual misconduct.
Hegseth stood strong against the left’s desperate attacks, and Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., torched “hypocritical” Democrats who come drunk to vote and cheat on their spouses.
Markwayne Mullin just absolutely annihilated every single Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, perfectly summing up their blatant hypocrisy towards Pete Hegseth.
A truly incredible moment.pic.twitter.com/talAJGUSzO
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) January 14, 2025
“How many senators have shown up drunk to vote at night? Have any of you guys asked them to step down and resign from their job? And don’t tell me you haven’t seen it, because I know you have,” Mullin said.
The GOP senator continued, “And then how many senators do you know have gotten a divorce for cheating on their wives? Did you ask them to step down? No. But it’s for show.”
Julianna Frieman is a freelance writer published by the Daily Caller, Headline USA, The Federalist, and the American Spectator. Follow her on Twitter at @JuliannaFrieman.
