Sean Hannity claimed that a disputed sexual stumble upon his former Fox News colleague Pete Hegseth had with a woman who accused him of rape was once “consensual.”

President-select Donald Trump nominated the U.S. Army veteran as Secretary of Security final month, which has spawned a series of negative information cycles about Hegseth’s previous which have raised questions about his health for the job and ability to be demonstrated through the Senate.

Chief amongst them is a 2017 police document through which a lady accused Hegseth of raping her in a resort room in Monterey, California. A police investigation resulted in no charges, and Hegseth denies the allegation. The former Fox News host paid the lady an undisclosed sum, and both parties signed a confidentiality agreement. Remaining week, Hegseth’s attorney accused the woman, who has no longer been publicly identified, of breaking that settlement and suggested his client could sue his accuser for extortion.

On Monday’s Hannity on Fox News, the host interviewed Hegseth and introduced up the allegation, though he pointed out it in obscure terms and mentioned a video talked about in the police document. The video reportedly presentations Hegseth and the lady strolling towards the hotel pool simply after 1 a.m. with their fingers locked. They “looked to be smiling,” the record said.

“The media mob doing what they predictably do,” Hannity told Hegseth. “You had a consensual relationship. It was investigated. You had been fully exonerated. And proper me if I’m fallacious here, wasn’t there videotape evidence that was once largely accountable for exonerating you?”

It’s uncertain if the nature of the sexual come across between Hegseth and his accuser was once “consensual.” The proof towards him was deemed inadequate to maintain a legal charge, which isn’t tantamount to an exoneration.

“I imply, in addition to personal witnesses and all of that, it was totally investigated on the time years in the past,” Hegseth answered earlier than falsely claiming he used to be “cleared” of wrongdoing. “I used to be completely cleared. And that’s why, Sean, what I sit up for? I’m having a look ahead to the FBI historical past check. I sit up for the actual, below-oath conversations with senators as we go throughout the process as a result of, again, that is what the left does, Sean. It’s the anatomy of a smear.”

Hegseth took problem with the truth that reporting about him has relied in large part on anonymous sources.

“After which they are trying to take a look at you within the media before that you can even get into the doorways with senators,” the nominee mentioned.

Along with the rape accusation, Hegseth was said to have smelled of alcohol while working at Fox Information and used to be reportedly closely intoxicated at a couple of work situations when he ran a veterans group. Hegseth and several of his former Fox colleagues deny the document. Hegseth additionally reportedly informed his first wife that he had 5 affairs whereas they have been married.

Watch above via Fox Information.

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