Ron DeSantis could be named US defence secretary as Pete Hegseth faces an uphill battle to win Senate confirmation

Donald Trump is reportedly considering presidential rival Ron DeSantis as his defence secretary as doubts grow over whether military veteran and TV host Pete Hegseth will be confirmed.

Ron DeSantis, right, could replace Pete Hegseth as Donald Trump's pick for defence secretary. Picture: AFP

Donald Trump is reportedly considering presidential rival Ron DeSantis as his defence secretary as doubts grow over whether military veteran and TV host Pete Hegseth will be confirmed by the US Senate, with Republicans expressing concern over fresh allegations of misconduct and drunkenness levelled against him.

The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday reported that the Florida Governor had been an earlier consideration for defence secretary but Mr Trump ultimately went with Mr Hegseth. But all that could change after senior ­Republicans expressed their doubts over Mr Hegseth’s candidacy.

With his nomination in doubt, Mr Hegseth was expected to conduct an interview on his former network, Fox News, on Wednesday (Thursday AEDT) to try to allay concerns over his selection for one of the most important jobs in Washington.

Mr Trump’s nominee to lead the US Drug Enforcement Agency, Hilsborough county sheriff Chad Chronister, also withdrew from consideration on Tuesday (Wednesday AEDT), declaring that he wanted to do more work for his local community in Florida.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis could be in the running as Donald Trump’s defence secretary. Picture: AFP

The new claims against Mr Hegseth relate to drunkenness while acting in an official capacity, inappropriate sexual behaviour and financial mismanagement while he headed up veterans advocacy groups before becoming a full-time Fox News host in 2017.

Republican senator Lindsey Graham on Tuesday said the allegations about Mr Hegseth’s past were “very disturbing”, suggesting it would be a challenging task to win Senate confirmation.

The South Carolina senator said Mr Hegseth “obviously has a chance to defend himself here, but some of this stuff is going to be ­difficult”.

“You know, time will tell,” Senator Graham told CBS. “Some of the things have to be addressed, and we’ll see … Leadership comes from the top. And I want to make sure that every young woman who joins the military feels respected and welcomed.”

The New Yorker revealed at the weekend that Mr Hegseth was forced to resign from two veterans’ groups amid concerns over his conduct. The report came after the Trump transition team was blindsided by revelations Mr Hegseth paid a woman to sign a non-­disclosure agreement after she claimed he sexually assaulted her in 2017.

He has denied the claim, arguing the encounter was consensual.

According to the New Yorker, a previously undisclosed seven-page whistleblower report on Mr Hegseth’s tenure as the president of Concerned Veterans for America, from 2013 to 2016, found he was repeatedly drunk on the job.

The document said he had to be restrained from joining dancers on stage at a Louisiana strip club in November 2014, where he had brought his team. It also says on one occasion, while on a work trip in Ohio, he was drunkenly chanting “Kill all Muslims” in the early hours of May 29, 2015.

The New Yorker also reported that the group Veterans for Freedom, which Mr Hegseth took over from 2007, ran up enormous debt and was unable to pay its creditors by the end of 2008.

The publication said by January 2009, Mr Hegseth sent a letter to donors acknowledging that the group had less than a $US1000 in the bank and $US434,833 in unpaid bills.

A lawyer for Mr Hegseth, Tim Parlatore, has denied all the allegations and told the New Yorker: “We’re not going to comment on outlandish claims laundered through the New Yorker by a petty and jealous disgruntled former associate of Mr Hegseth. Get back to us when you try your first attempt at actual journalism.”

Incoming Republican chairman of the Senate armed services committee, Roger Wicker, told CNN that he wanted to see the whistleblower report that informed The New Yorker piece. “I’m sure I’ll see it,” he said.