‘I Dreaded Talking About This’: Fox Pundit Drops Surprising Personal Revelation While Arguing Against Hegseth Nom
In a dramatic turn of events on Fox News, Democratic strategist Leslie Marshall revealed her personal experience as a rape survivor while voicing opposition to former network host Pete Hegseth’s nomination for Secretary of Defense by Donald Trump.
Marshall, who previously maintained a friendly relationship with Hegseth, made the emotional disclosure during a Sunday broadcast.
“I dreaded talking about this today. I met Pete a long time ago. We spent, middle of the night, waiting to go on during 2016, before the election, and I like him as a person,” Marshall said.
The revelation comes amid resurfacing allegations of sexual assault against Hegseth from 2017, Daily Mail outlined.
While Hegseth denies the accusations, his attorney Timothy Parlatore confirmed making payments to the accuser to prevent public disclosure, characterizing the situation as a “successful extortion” while maintaining the allegations were “baseless.”
Parlatore even went as far as to state that Hegseth’s sexual assault accuser was actually “the aggressor,” TTOA previously reported.
Daily Mail highlighted that a recently released Monterey, California police report details an incident involving a 30-year-old woman who reported becoming disoriented after drinking champagne with colleagues during a business trip.
The report indicates she sustained injuries, including “contusions to the right thigh.”
The accuser stated that “things got fuzzy” after the two had been drinking at a hotel bar and that she could not remember going back to his room, per The New York Post.
Hegseth’s statement came after police reports surfaced, highlighting several inconsistencies in the accuser’s account.
Hegseth admitted to police that he and the unidentified woman did have sex but stated that it was consensual.
New: The police report on the 2017 sexual assault allegations against Pete Hegseth were released tonight and include graphic details from his accuser. The report also includes Hegseth's strenuous denials of coercive behavior pic.twitter.com/OD76OXADHk
— John Hudson (@John_Hudson) November 21, 2024
According to a memo sent to Trump’s staff by an unnamed woman familiar with the case, the alleged victim underwent a rape kit examination that tested positive for semen.
The local police launched an investigation four days after the reported incident, though Hegseth has not faced criminal charges or civil lawsuits.
The controversy intensified after Daily Mail’s exclusive report revealing Hegseth fathered a child with his Fox News producer shortly before the alleged assault.
Marshall cited these circumstances, along with accusations of infidelity against the thrice-married Hegseth, as concerning given military codes regarding adultery.
Republican support for Hegseth remains strong, however.
A CBS News poll showed 64 percent of Republicans backing Hegseth’s nomination.
Daily Mail noted that Republican Tennessee Sen. Bill Hagerty defended the nominee, stating, “Don’t let these allegations distract us. What we need is real significant change. The Pentagon has been more focused on pronouns than they have lethality the past four years.”
Republican Sen. Eric Schmitt of Montana emphasized the importance of the confirmation process, indicating his preliminary support while acknowledging the need for thorough questioning.
Hegseth publicly addressed allegations last week that he sexually assaulted a woman in 2017, TTOA reported.
“It’s very simple. The matter was fully investigated, and I was completely cleared, and that’s where I’m gonna leave it,” he told reporters on Capitol Hill on Thursday.
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