Chuck Darwin<p>Only days after emerging from a private meeting with <a href="https://c.im/tags/Pete" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Pete</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Hegseth" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Hegseth</span></a> sounding unconvinced about his fitness to lead the Pentagon, Senator <a href="https://c.im/tags/Joni" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Joni</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Ernst" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Ernst</span></a>, <br>the first female combat veteran to serve in the Senate and a survivor of sexual assault, <br>indicated that a second sit-down had allayed her concerns.</p><p>And she suggested that a torrent of allegations against Mr. Hegseth that had put his candidacy in jeopardy<br> — including sexual assault, sexual impropriety in the workplace, public drunkenness and fiscal mismanagement<br> — might not be disqualifying unless his accusers came forward publicly.</p><p>Her shift suggested that Trump’s MAGA base was ready, willing and able to bully Republicans into submitting to his desires.</p><p>Trump’s hard-line backers paid for ads in Ms. Ernst’s home state, <br>questioned her Republican bona fides on social media <br>and even threatened to launch primary challenges against her in 2026 to push her toward supporting Mr. Hegseth as the nominee.</p><p>Some prominent Trump activists, including <a href="https://c.im/tags/Charlie" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Charlie</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Kirk" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Kirk</span></a> <br>and <a href="https://c.im/tags/Stephen" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Stephen</span></a> K. <a href="https://c.im/tags/Bannon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Bannon</span></a>, the right-wing strategist, pushed to recruit <a href="https://c.im/tags/Kari" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Kari</span></a> <a href="https://c.im/tags/Lake" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>Lake</span></a>, <br>the former Republican candidate for governor of Arizona who grew up in Iowa, as a potential challenger to Ms. Ernst.<br><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/09/us/politics/ernst-hegseth-defense-trump.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" translate="no" target="_blank"><span class="invisible">https://www.</span><span class="ellipsis">nytimes.com/2024/12/09/us/poli</span><span class="invisible">tics/ernst-hegseth-defense-trump.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare</span></a></p>