Former Fox News Host Says Fox ‘Bubble’ May Have Convinced Scandal-Ridden Pete Hegseth He Could Be Nominated Without Pushback

Former Fox & Friends co-host Gretchen Carlson blamed the Fox News “bubble” for Pete Hegseth’s nomination as secretary of defense in President-elect Donald Trump’s second administration, Tuesday.

Reacting on CNN’s Anderson Cooper 36o to the recent sexual assault and workplace alcohol allegations against her former colleague, Carlson said:

There’s so many allegations. I mean, it’s not just about financial mismanagement at these two organizations. It’s the sexual misconduct claims. It’s the alcohol alleged problems. I mean, it just keeps coming out. I just can’t believe that this would ever go to a hearing, and the thing I’ve been thinking about today, aside from why we even teach our kids to have morals and values, is that, I mean, why would Pete Hegseth put himself in this situation? And the only answer that I can come up with is that when you work at Fox, it’s kind of like a bubble, and maybe he just felt like none of this would ever come out and that Trump really didn’t have any repercussions for some of the alleged sexual misconduct things that he had in his past as well.

Carlson – who filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against Fox News chairman and CEO Roger Ailes in 2016 – criticized Trump’s decision to nominate Hegseth for secretary of defense last month, arguing he was not qualified for the position.

“From silly diner interviews on Weekend Fox and Friends to Secretary of Defense?” she wrote. “I never thought I’d say I’m stunned about any pick after the election but nominating Pete Hegseth for this incredibly important role? Yes he’s a veteran … and?”

Following his nomination, a police report documenting a sexual assault allegation made against Hegseth in 2017 came to light, along with a 2018 email his mother sent accusing her son of abusing women.

This week, Hegseth was also accused of engaging in drunken behavior while overseeing a veteran’s rights organization. The former Fox News host faced similar accusations from 10 current and former Fox News staffers, who claimed Hegseth’s drinking concerned his colleagues.

Watch above via CNN.