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    • The Trump administration is picking who has faced allegations of sexual misconduct
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    The Trump administration is picking who has faced allegations of sexual misconduct

    Online Niel Posted on

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    Four men Donald Trump consider for his administration in a second presidential term to have been publicly accused of sexual misconduct, including former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), host of Fox News Pete Hegsethformer independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and tech billionaire Elon Musk.

    Trump has faced allegations of sexual misconduct of 19 womenand in 2023, a federal jury found him responsible for sexual abuse of writer E. Jean Carroll nearly three decades ago. Trump has denied wrongdoing and is appealing the verdict in Carroll’s civil case. Since announcing his planned cabinet nominations, he has largely ignored allegations of sexual misconduct against potential members of his incoming administration.

    Here’s what you need to know about the public allegations against the four candidates:

    More: Who has Donald Trump picked for his cabinet so far? Here’s what you need to know

    Matt Gaetz and a House Ethics Committee investigation

    Trump plans to nominate Gaetz for the post of attorney generalrole in which he would oversee the US Department of Justice Ethics Committee of the House of Representatives met Wednesday but could not reach a consensus on whether to release the report on the former congressman’s sexual misconduct allegations. The decision was deadlocked along partisan linesaccording to Pennsylvania Rep. Susan Wild, who is the top Democrat on the panel. It is uncertain whether the probe will continue because The Florida congressman has resigned his seat in the Republican-controlled House last week, hours after the president-elect announced his choice and as the probe was close to completion. Gaetz denies any wrongdoing.

    Two women testified in a Investigation by the House Ethics Committee that he paid them for sex, according to Washington Post and ABC Newswho spoke to the lawyer who represented them. One of the women also said she saw Gaetz having sex with a 17-year-old, according to media reports.

    In 2021, the US Department of Justice investigated Gaetz for allegedly trafficking and having a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old boy. Gaetz denied involvement and was not charged.

    Since Trump tapped Gaetz to lead the nation’s largest law enforcement agency, House Speaker Mike Johnson said the committee the report must not be made public. But Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Oklahoma, told NBC’s “Meet the Press” Sunday that the group should send its report to the Senate.

    “The Senate should have access to that,” Mullin said. “Should it be released to the public or not? This, I think, will be part of the negotiations”.

    “These are baseless accusations intends to derail the second Trump administration,” Gaetz spokesman Alex Pfeiffer said in an email to Reuters on Monday.

    Pete Hegseth reached a plea deal with the accuser

    Trump’s pick for defense secretary Pete Hegsetha Fox News commentator and Army National Guard veteran who was involved in a 2017 sexual assault investigation, police confirmed.

    City officials in Monterey, Calif., released a statement last Thursday confirming Hegseth’s involvement in a the investigation into an alleged sexual assault without revealing substantial details about the incident or who the allegations were against, according to earlier reporting by USA TODAY.

    According to the police statement, the incident happened overnight, between October 7-8, 2017. The address mentioned in the report is that of Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa at Del Monte Golf Course. The incident was reported to police four days later, the statement said.

    Hegseth paid an undisclosed amount to the woman who accused him of sexual assault because he feared losing his job at Fox News, according to a statement from his attorney and filings. obtained by The Washington Post.

    Hegseth has never faced criminal charges and denies the allegation.

    Robert F. Kennedy Jr. apologized to the former nanny

    Trump said he would nominate Kennedy to lead the US Department of Health and Human Services, a controversial choice for several reasons, including skepticism about vaccines.

    In an exclusive interview with USA TODAY, Eliza Cooney confirmed the allegations that Kennedy groped her after a yoga class in 1998, when she was 23 and working as his family’s nanny.

    Kennedy publicly denied the assault charge as part of his “restless youth” but apologized privately to Cooney in a text message, since reviewed by USA TODAY.

    Elon Musk, a $250,000 settlement and a SpaceX lawsuit

    Trump has tapped Musk to lead a proposed new Department of Government Efficiency to cut government spending alongside a billionaire Vivek Ramaswamy.

    In 2022, Musk denied an Insider report that SpaceX has settled a $250,000 sexual misconduct claim by a flight attendant for its aerospace company’s fleet of corporate jets. The woman claimed Musk exposed himself and rubbed her leg without consent, according to interviews and documents obtained by the media.

    In June, eight engineers sued the company and Musk. They said they were unfairly fired after raising concerns about alleged sexual harassment and discrimination against women at SpaceX.

    Musk has denied the allegations.

    Contact Rachel Barber at [email protected] and follow her on X @rachelbarber_

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