‘Profound fear and anxiety among women in uniform’: Pentagon responds to Hegseth allegations
Officials are expressing concern that the new leader may hinder efforts to prevent setbacks.
TroibNews 
The recent release of a police report detailing sexual assault allegations against Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for Defense Secretary, has raised concerns among both current and former Defense Department officials about a potential regression in efforts to combat sexual abuse within the military.
Officials are worried that Hegseth, who has faced backlash for his opposition to women serving in combat roles, may adversely impact initiatives aimed at recruiting women into the armed forces. “When you have a leader that has already been credibly accused of sexual assault and then already has other signals in his background that he’s not concerned about the contributions that women can make to national security, it could create bad signals up and down the chain of command,” stated one Defense Department official, who requested anonymity for candidness. “I imagine there is already profound fear and anxiety among women in uniform.”
In 2017, a woman reported to police that Hegseth, a former Fox News host and Army veteran, sexually assaulted her by blocking her hotel room door and taking her cellphone. This police report, released to the media on Thursday, details the incident. Hegseth has consistently denied any wrongdoing and has not faced charges.
The Trump transition team did not respond to requests for comment.
Reports indicate that sexual assault incidents within the military began to rise in 2018 during Trump’s first term and became a significant national concern in 2020 after the tragic murder of 20-year-old soldier Vanessa Guillén, who had communicated to her family about being sexually harassed.
“To have someone who now at least has had a police investigation and paid a victim, enforced a [nondisclosure agreement] regarding a sexual assault sends a horrific message,” remarked a former DOD official. “It likely means that any progress the department has made regarding sexual assault, sexual harassment is going to be at best, repealed, if not completely eliminated.”
Under the Biden administration, the Pentagon established a 90-day independent review board to address sexual assault, shifting the handling of such crimes, domestic violence, and child abuse from military commanders to specialized military lawyers. Additionally, the military is working to recruit thousands of psychologists to support survivors of sexual assault.
“The military has come a long way to provide spaces for victims to be able to see some change and feel empowered,” noted another former DOD official. “Military sexual trauma is now something that is universally recognized where it wasn’t in previous decades.”
Katherine Kuzminski, director of the Military, Veterans, and Society program at the Center for a New American Security, pointed out that women at the Pentagon are apprehensive about several policies that may be scrutinized under the Trump administration, such as those involving women in combat roles and various diversity initiatives.
“All of those efforts are all DOD policy, not law, and so would be within [Hegseth’s] control,” she explained. “The question then, is the impact that that might have on specifically the Army and the Marine Corps, given the opening of combat positions to women and just the overall culture within the services.”
The second former DOD official emphasized that while the Pentagon has made strides, challenges remain. “The military has come a long way to provide spaces for victims to be able to see some change and feel empowered,” the official stated. “Military sexual trauma is now something that is universally recognized where it wasn’t in previous decades.”
Service members now have increased options to separate from the military due to sexual assault, seek benefits, or discreetly transfer units. “I can’t imagine how any victim wouldn’t feel triggered by all of this news and then have faith in the system,” the second former DOD official commented.
However, efforts to establish the Integrated Primary Prevention Workforce at military installations worldwide are reportedly impeded by commanders focusing on filling combat roles. A faction within the military also continues to minimize sexual assault as a genuine issue.
“The Army is doing OK on hiring but isn’t close to full up,” said the first DOD official. “Those are new billets and there is constant pressure not to hire people or shift resources. Commanders want to do things that aren’t prevention work.”
A Pentagon report on military suicides released this month revealed that 3 percent of individuals who took their own lives reported experiencing physical or sexual assault or harassment in the previous year. Although reported sexual assault cases in the military decreased in 2023 according to the Pentagon’s figures, an estimate from Brown University’s Watson Institute suggested roughly 73,600 cases, starkly contrasting the DOD’s estimate of 29,000 for the same year.
Current and former DOD officials express concern that ignoring issues of sexual assault could undermine recruitment and retention at a time when the Pentagon is supporting allies in two wars and preparing for potential conflict in the Indo-Pacific.
“It means we can’t win,” asserted Andrea Goldstein, the Navy’s former acting director for force resiliency who led initiatives against sexual harassment and assault within the service. “It’s that simple. If you want to protect the peace and fight and win our nation’s wars, you need to have a strong, resilient fighting force. And if you are undermining that strong and resilient fighting force in the form of denigrating members of your formation, in the form of doing things that make them less safe particularly from other service members, then you can’t achieve your mission.”
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
Officials are worried that Hegseth, who has faced backlash for his opposition to women serving in combat roles, may adversely impact initiatives aimed at recruiting women into the armed forces. “When you have a leader that has already been credibly accused of sexual assault and then already has other signals in his background that he’s not concerned about the contributions that women can make to national security, it could create bad signals up and down the chain of command,” stated one Defense Department official, who requested anonymity for candidness. “I imagine there is already profound fear and anxiety among women in uniform.”
In 2017, a woman reported to police that Hegseth, a former Fox News host and Army veteran, sexually assaulted her by blocking her hotel room door and taking her cellphone. This police report, released to the media on Thursday, details the incident. Hegseth has consistently denied any wrongdoing and has not faced charges.
The Trump transition team did not respond to requests for comment.
Reports indicate that sexual assault incidents within the military began to rise in 2018 during Trump’s first term and became a significant national concern in 2020 after the tragic murder of 20-year-old soldier Vanessa Guillén, who had communicated to her family about being sexually harassed.
“To have someone who now at least has had a police investigation and paid a victim, enforced a [nondisclosure agreement] regarding a sexual assault sends a horrific message,” remarked a former DOD official. “It likely means that any progress the department has made regarding sexual assault, sexual harassment is going to be at best, repealed, if not completely eliminated.”
Under the Biden administration, the Pentagon established a 90-day independent review board to address sexual assault, shifting the handling of such crimes, domestic violence, and child abuse from military commanders to specialized military lawyers. Additionally, the military is working to recruit thousands of psychologists to support survivors of sexual assault.
“The military has come a long way to provide spaces for victims to be able to see some change and feel empowered,” noted another former DOD official. “Military sexual trauma is now something that is universally recognized where it wasn’t in previous decades.”
Katherine Kuzminski, director of the Military, Veterans, and Society program at the Center for a New American Security, pointed out that women at the Pentagon are apprehensive about several policies that may be scrutinized under the Trump administration, such as those involving women in combat roles and various diversity initiatives.
“All of those efforts are all DOD policy, not law, and so would be within [Hegseth’s] control,” she explained. “The question then, is the impact that that might have on specifically the Army and the Marine Corps, given the opening of combat positions to women and just the overall culture within the services.”
The second former DOD official emphasized that while the Pentagon has made strides, challenges remain. “The military has come a long way to provide spaces for victims to be able to see some change and feel empowered,” the official stated. “Military sexual trauma is now something that is universally recognized where it wasn’t in previous decades.”
Service members now have increased options to separate from the military due to sexual assault, seek benefits, or discreetly transfer units. “I can’t imagine how any victim wouldn’t feel triggered by all of this news and then have faith in the system,” the second former DOD official commented.
However, efforts to establish the Integrated Primary Prevention Workforce at military installations worldwide are reportedly impeded by commanders focusing on filling combat roles. A faction within the military also continues to minimize sexual assault as a genuine issue.
“The Army is doing OK on hiring but isn’t close to full up,” said the first DOD official. “Those are new billets and there is constant pressure not to hire people or shift resources. Commanders want to do things that aren’t prevention work.”
A Pentagon report on military suicides released this month revealed that 3 percent of individuals who took their own lives reported experiencing physical or sexual assault or harassment in the previous year. Although reported sexual assault cases in the military decreased in 2023 according to the Pentagon’s figures, an estimate from Brown University’s Watson Institute suggested roughly 73,600 cases, starkly contrasting the DOD’s estimate of 29,000 for the same year.
Current and former DOD officials express concern that ignoring issues of sexual assault could undermine recruitment and retention at a time when the Pentagon is supporting allies in two wars and preparing for potential conflict in the Indo-Pacific.
“It means we can’t win,” asserted Andrea Goldstein, the Navy’s former acting director for force resiliency who led initiatives against sexual harassment and assault within the service. “It’s that simple. If you want to protect the peace and fight and win our nation’s wars, you need to have a strong, resilient fighting force. And if you are undermining that strong and resilient fighting force in the form of denigrating members of your formation, in the form of doing things that make them less safe particularly from other service members, then you can’t achieve your mission.”
Max Fischer contributed to this report for TROIB News
