In a blistering column for The Guardian, Moira Donegan criticizes the Republican Party for its rapid push to confirm Fox News personality Pete Hegseth as the next Secretary of Defense. Donegan describes the GOP’s actions as emblematic of “servility” to President-elect Donald Trump, calling the nominee “incompetent” and lacking “redeeming qualities.”
Donegan’s piece highlights serious concerns over the confirmation process, particularly reports that some Republican senators have refused to meet privately with a woman who accused Hegseth of sexual assault. She argues this reflects a troubling abandonment of constitutional checks and balances.
“What is happening in the Hegseth confirmation, then, is not merely the nomination of an unqualified and dangerously incompetent man to a position of authority that he can’t handle and does not deserve,” Donegan writes. “It is something more like the buckling of constitutional checks and balances in the face of Trump’s authoritarian ambitions – and Elon Musk’s money.”
Donegan also notes Hegseth’s controversial testimony during his confirmation hearing, focusing on what he avoided addressing. “What was perhaps most notable about Hegseth’s testimony was what he did not say: he did not say, though he was asked several times, that he would refuse to carry out an unconstitutional order by Donald Trump,” she writes.
She suggests this omission could be a key reason Trump selected Hegseth for the role. “That, too, might be why the president chose him. Our system of government is already broken. But the president-elect seems determined to break it more.”
Donegan warns that the GOP’s willingness to rubber-stamp Hegseth’s nomination could have long-term consequences, particularly if Hegseth aligns with an agenda that undermines democratic norms. Critics have raised concerns over Hegseth’s qualifications, given his lack of substantial defense or policy experience.
His close alignment with Trump and controversial views have drawn sharp scrutiny from Democrats and some independent analysts, but Republican lawmakers have largely closed ranks to push his confirmation forward.
Donegan’s column underscores growing fears about the erosion of institutional safeguards and the GOP’s prioritization of loyalty to Trump over rigorous vetting of nominees. As Hegseth’s confirmation process unfolds, it is increasingly seen as a litmus test for the strength—or fragility—of constitutional checks in the face of partisan politics.