What a Difference a Week Makes for Pete Hegseth

New York Times: “President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to lead the Pentagon was battered by damaging headlines: Drinking. Extramarital affairs. An allegation of sexual assault, which he denied.”

“Republican senators — emboldened after tanking Mr. Trump’s first choice for attorney general, the scandal-ridden Matt Gaetz — were going public with their concerns. Mr. Trump was getting sick of hearing about it all, and he told confidants he was serious about picking Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida to replace him.”

“But within 48 hours, Mr. Trump had changed his mind. He was going to see if Mr. Hegseth could survive.”

“People close to the president-elect had been telling him that this was a moment that would test his power as he prepared to return to Washington. It would be catastrophic, they argued, if he allowed Republican senators, like Joni Ernst of Iowa, to obstruct his mandate.”