Pete Hegseth was called "abuser of women" by his mother: He admitted to having five affairs during first marriage
US Defense Secretary
Pete Hegseth's "
Signal chat leak
row" is back to haunt him again. The 'Signalgate' has reared its head again after a new bombshell report that he shared details of a U.S. military strike on Yemen in a second group chat. This Time, Hegseth is in hot water for for reportedly adding his wife Jennifer Rauchet, brother Phil, and personal attorney Tim Parlatore, to a second Signal group where details about upcoming military strikes aimed at the Houthis were discussed, according to the New York Times.
This comes weeks after a veteran US journalist, Jeffrey Goldberg, claimed he was added to a Signal chat group with high-ranking US security officials, who were discussing US airstrikes on Yemen. Details, including flight schedules for the warplanes involved, were shared by Hegseth in the group chat on March 15, the newspaper reports.
According to the NYT report, Pete Hegseth, on a second Signal chat, shared flight schedules for the F/A-18 Hornets targeting the Houthis in Yemen. The information was reportedly sent on March 15. Amid this controversy,
Pete Hegseth
's wife Jennifer Rauchet is gaining a lot of attention since this fiasco, now popularly known as Signalgate 2.0.
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Pete Hegseth-Jennifer Rauchet's love story
Just like his political career, Pete Hegseth's personal life has seen its fair share of turbulence — from infidelity to allegations of sexual misconduct, the controversies are far from few. Hegseth's past includes multiple marriages, infidelity, and a strained relationship with his mother, who accused him of abusing women.
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Pete Hegseth married his first wife Meredith Schwarz in 2004, who was his high school girlfriend from Minnesota. The couple parted ways in 2009 after he reportedly admitted to five affairs.
The couple filed for divorce in 2008 and it was filed by Schwarz after Hegseth admitted that he had cheated on her, according to four sources close to the couple. According to APM report, infidelity was listed as listed as grounds in the couple's divorce proceedings.
As per those sources, Hegseth's infidelity left Schwarz emotionally and psychologically devastated. One of them told Vanity Fair, 'She was gaslighted by him heavily throughout their relationship. As far as everyone else was concerned, they were viewed by many as this all-American power couple that was making big things for themselves.'
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'Try finding something new': Trump backs Pete Hegseth as US Defense Sec blames 'media' for Signal chat leak row
Pete Hegseth's second marriage
Hegseth was dating Samantha Deering when Meredith Schwarz filed for the divorce proceedings. Pete Hegseth met Samantha while he was working in Washington at Vets for Freedom. In 2010, Hegseth married Deering. With Samantha, Pete has three kids.
In August 2017, while still being married to Samantha, Hegseth had daughter Gwen, with Fox executive producer Jennifer Rauchet. In September 2017, Deering filed for divorce that took ten months to finalize. After fathering a daughter with Jennifer, Pete Hegseth married her in 2019 at Trump's golf course in Colts Neck, New Jersey.
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Pentagon's chaotic week: US Army commander suspended after astonishing insult to Trump, Vance and Hegseth
'You are an abuser of women'
In 2018, amid Pete Hegseth's divorce from his second wife, Samantha, his mother, Penelope Hegseth, sent him a strongly worded email criticizing his behaviour towards women. In the message, she accused him of being "an abuser of women," expressing deep disappointment and stating, "I have no respect for any man that belittles, lies, cheats, sleeps around, and uses women for his own power and ego." She added, "You are that man (and have been for years) and as your mother it pains me and embarrasses me to say that, but it is the sad, sad truth... It's time for someone (I wish it was a strong man) to stand up to your abusive behavior and call it out, especially against women."
The New York Times published the email in November 2024, shortly after former President Trump announced his intent to nominate Hegseth for Secretary of Defense. When interviewed by the Times, Penelope Hegseth clarified that the email had been written "in anger, with emotion," and that she had sent an apology shortly afterward. She further stated that her earlier claims were not accurate and "never been true."
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