Senators receive affidavit containing new allegations against Pete Hegseth, who denies them

WASHINGTON – Senators received an affidavit Tuesday from Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth’s former sister-in-law in which she says his behavior made his second wife fear for her safety. The receipt of the affidavit comes after Senate Armed Services Committee staff were in contact with Hegseth’s former sister-in-law for several days.

The former sister-in-law, Danielle Hegseth, filed the affidavit in response to a Jan. 18 letter from Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., requesting “a statement attesting to your personal knowledge of Mr. Hegseth’s suitability to serve in this position.” ”. important position.”

Reed asked Danielle Hegseth to detail what she knew about “instances of abuse or threats of abuse perpetrated against any other person” and “mistreatment of a spouse, ex-spouse, or other members of your family,” among other requests.

Reed said in a statement Tuesday: “As I have said for months, reports of Mr. Hegseth’s history of alleged sexual assault, alcohol abuse and public misconduct require a thorough background investigation. “I have been concerned that the background check process was inadequate and this affidavit confirms that fact.”

He added that “the alleged pattern of abuse and misconduct by Mr. Hegseth is disturbing. “This behavior would disqualify any service member from holding any leadership position in the military, much less being confirmed as Secretary of Defense.”

Danielle describes in the affidavit allegations of volatile and threatening behavior by Hegseth that caused his second wife, Samantha Hegseth, to fear for her safety.

Two days before Congress received the affidavit, NBC News reached out to Samantha Hegseth to detail some of the allegations contained in the affidavit and asked for comment.

In an email response on Monday, Samantha Hegseth said: “First of all, I have not and will not comment on my marriage to Pete Hegseth. “I have no representatives to speak on my behalf, nor have I ever asked anyone to share or speak about the details of my marriage on my behalf, whether it be a reporter, a committee member, a transition team member, etc.”

He added: “I do not believe his information is accurate and I have sent a copy to my lawyer.”

When asked what information was inaccurate and what to comment on the affidavit, he responded Tuesday: “There was no physical abuse in my marriage. This is the only additional statement I will make to you. I have let you know that I do not and will not talk about my marriage to Pete. Please respect this decision.”

An attorney for Pete Hegseth, Tim Parlatore, dismissed the allegations.

“Sam has never alleged there was any abuse, signed court papers acknowledging there was no abuse, and recently reaffirmed the same during his interview with the FBI. Late claims by Danielle Dietrich, a far-left anti-Trump Democrat who is divorced from Mr. “Hegseth’s brother and never got along with the Hegseth family, don’t do anything to change that,” he said in a statement.

“After a bitter divorce, Mrs. Dietrich has an ax against the entire Hegseth family,” he added. “Ms. Dietrich admits she didn’t see anything, but now falsely accuses Sam of lying to both the Court and the FBI because of private, undocumented statements he allegedly made 10 years ago.”

Both Pete Hegseth and Samantha Hegseth signed a 2021 court document that said neither parent claimed to be a victim of domestic abuse.

“I have decided to come forward publicly, at significant personal sacrifice, because I am deeply concerned about what Hegseth’s confirmation would mean for our military and our country,” Danielle Hegseth says in the affidavit, a redacted copy of which has been reviewed by NBC. News.

He adds that part of his reason for running is “because I have been assured that making this public statement will guarantee that certain senators who are still undecided will vote against Hegseth’s confirmation. But to have that assurance, I would not subject myself or others mentioned in this statement to the public scrutiny that this statement is likely to cause.”

The allegations contained in the affidavit paint a picture of Hegseth’s strained relationship with Samantha Hegseth. The two married in 2010 and divorced in 2017. They have three children.

Danielle decided to speak to committee staff after consideration, sources said, but notes in the affidavit that she had detailed the allegations to an FBI agent in a Dec. 30, 2024, interview conducted as part of her background investigation into Pete. Hegseth.

The committee’s Republican chairman and ranking Democratic member were not informed about the information Danielle provided to the FBI when Trump’s transition team briefed them on the results of Pete Hegseth’s background check before the hearing, according to two sources with knowledge of the content of the instructions.

According to the affidavit, Danielle Hegseth says she conveyed additional information about Pete Hegseth to the FBI on Jan. 18, 2025, four days after Hegseth testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee as part of his confirmation process. The FBI declined to comment to NBC News.

Separately, Arthur Schwartz, a Hegseth adviser and paid Trump transition consultant, said in an email Monday: “Even SASC Democrats found these allegations too flimsy to raise with Mr. Hegseth or his Republican colleagues in committee, which says a lot about the allegations and NBC’s publishing standards.” Schwartz did not respond to an email Tuesday requesting comment on the existence of the affidavit.

In the affidavit, Danielle notes that “a lot” of what she knows about Samantha’s situation “was learned from her at the time of the events in question.”

“However, I trust what Samantha told me for the reasons stated above, especially because it was consistent with what I personally observed about Hegseth’s erratic and aggressive behavior over many years,” Danielle said.

Three days after Hegseth’s confirmation hearing before the Armed Services committee, some Democratic staff members heard the information now contained in the affidavit directly from Danielle for the first time, according to three sources.

This development comes after NBC News and other media organizations have reported concerns about Hegseth’s drinking. If confirmed, Hegseth will hold a senior position in President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet, overseeing the Department of Defense and its millions of employees spread across the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps and more.

The accusations also raise new questions about the scope and thoroughness of Hegseth’s FBI background check, what members and staff of the Armed Services Committee knew and when, and what the Trump transition communicated to the committee before last week’s confirmation hearing.

After his committee voted along party lines Monday to move Hegseth’s nomination to the Senate floor for a vote as soon as this week, Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss., was asked if he’s worried about it coming to light. more accusations against Hegseth.

“I think you all probably heard the whisper of a rumor earlier today, which was anonymous, unsubstantiated and contradicted some court documents that had been included in the hearing record,” Wicker said.

A vote on Hegseth’s nomination is expected in the full Senate on Thursday. To be confirmed, Hegseth would need only a simple majority of the full Senate, meaning he could be approved with the support of 51 of the Senate’s 53 Republicans.