'He Will Be Fantastic': Donald Trump Defends Nominating Pete Hegseth for Secretary of Defense Amid Backlash

President-elect Donald Trump went to bat for Pete Hegseth, his Secretary of Defense pick, by claiming the former Fox News host will be "fantastic" amid the outpour of backlash he's received.

Hegseth's plethora of allegations ranging from rape, alcohol abuse and rampant infidelity have led to calls from both sides of the aisle for Trump to select another person.

The president-elect took to Truth Social to deny reports he was reconsidering his pick and wrote: "Pete Hegseth is doing very well. His support is strong and deep, much more so than the Fake News would have you believe."

"He was a great student – Princeton/Harvard educated – with a Military state of mind. He will be a fantastic, high-energy Secretary of Defense," he added, claiming the TV star will be "one who leads with charisma and skill."

"Pete is a WINNER, and there is nothing that can be done to change that!!!" he concluded.

According to people close to the President-elect's team, Trump allies believe Hegseth may not "survive further scrutiny."

There are a number of GOP senators who are not comfortable supporting Hegseth's bid, and given Republicans' slim Senate majority in the next Congress, the former TV personality can only afford to lose three GOP votes, assuming all Democrats vote against him.

Republican Iowa Senator Joni Ernst, who sits on the Armed Services Committee, said she would not commit to supporting Hegseth's nomination and revealed she planned to grill the former cable news host about new accounts of his alleged past.

Even Trump die-hard supporters, including South Carolina’s Governor Lindsey Graham, have called the allegations against Hegseth "concerning."

On Wednesday, December 4, Hegseth told reporters, "I will answer all of these senators’ questions, but this will not be a process tried in the media. I don’t answer to anyone in this group. None of you, not to that camera at all."

"I answer to President Trump, who received 76 million votes on behalf — and a mandate for change. I answer to the 50 — the 100 — senators who are part of this process and those in the committee, and I answer to my lord and savior. And my wife and my family," he continued.

As OK! previously reported, the Pete's own mother, Penelope Hegseth, also slammed her son as an “abuser of women” in a 2018 email during the dissolution of his second marriage.

The mother later defended her son on Fox and Friends, saying, "I want people to look at Pete and understand him for who he is today. And to disregard the media — that was seven years ago — and most of that was misinformation."