Pete Hegseth's mother defends him on "Fox & Friends": "He's redeemed"

Penelope Hegseth addressed the controversy surrounding a heated email she sent to her son Pete Hegseth, President Donald Trump’s pick for defense secretary, in an interview with “Fox & Friends” on Wednesday.

The email Penelope sent him in 2018 said Pete was a “woman abuser” and that she had “no respect for any man who belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around and uses women for his own power and ego.” “. “, says the New York Times. This came after an unidentified woman claimed in a police report in 2017 that Pete Hegseth had sexually assaulted her, which he denied. Hegseth paid his accuser an undisclosed sum in a settlement.

But Penelope Hegseth said during the Fox News interview that Pete Hegseth, 44, is no longer the same man he was seven years ago.

“Pete is a new person. He is redeemed, forgiven, changed. I think we all are after seven years. I believe he is the right man for the job,” she said.

“I just hope that today people learn who Pete is, especially our lovely senators, that you listen to him, listen with your heart to the truth about Pete,” she added, amid reports her son may be having trouble. to be confirmed by the Senate.

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Penelope Hegseth said she wrote the email “in a hurry” and with “deep feelings.” She explained that at the time she wrote the article, her son was going through a contentious divorce with his second wife.

According to the Times, his second wife filed for divorce after Pete Hegseth impregnated a nonprofit group employee.

Hegseth later became an anchor on Fox News. Recent reports suggest his drinking has worried former colleagues.

“Our job as parents is to correct. You should tell the truth. And I’m a passionate person like Pete, and sometimes emotional words come out. I don’t think any of that is true,” she said.

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