Affair Rumors That Will Haunt Trump Secretary Of Defense Pete Hegseth Forever

This article contains discussion of sexual assault. 

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth fits the Trump mold to a tee; He used to be a Fox News presenter, he's had three wives, and he's been accused of sexual misconduct. Once the president nominated him, Hegseth's messy love life took center stage. As it turns out, he cheated on his first wife with his second, and on his second with his third (the phrase "once a cheater, always a cheater" seems to ring true in the White House staffer's case). Amid all the controversial things that have come out about Hegseth, sources also revealed to Vanity Fair in 2024 that he had five affairs while married to his first wife, Meredith Schwarz. To Hegseth's credit, he did tell her about his infidelity before she found out about it from someone else. In a subsequent conversation with Schwarz's brother, the future defense secretary reportedly made it clear that he wasn't the person everyone thought him to be. 

"He said, and this quote is as clear as day, 'I'm a f***ed up individual,'" an insider recalled. A former Fox News colleague similarly dished to the New Yorker, "[Hegseth] had a kind of what-happens-in-Vegas-stays-in-Vegas kind of attitude, while his wife and kids were in Minnesota," adding, "He was very handsy with women, too." Schwarz reportedly tried to make their marriage work regardless, but Hegseth refused to change his ways, including regularly fraternizing with Samantha Deering, who was his colleague at Vets for Freedom and later became his second wife. Hegseth had a child with Deering before they tied the knot in 2010. Similarly, he then went on to have another affair, this time with his Fox News colleague Jennifer Rauchet, who became pregnant before the two also married in 2019.

When Pete Hegseth announced the rare, and highly mysterious, gathering of senior military officials at Quantico, Virginia, in September 2025, he claimed the purpose of the meeting was to instill and renew the "warrior ethos" in them, per ABC News. His definition of this so-called "warrior ethos" remains unclear. What is clear is that evidence of the Trump staffer's past misconduct suggests he's the last person who should be lecturing people on values and morals. While Hegseth was married to Samantha Deering, for instance, he faced charges of sexual assault from a woman he had an encounter with at a hotel back in 2017. The woman, who underwent a physical exam four days after the alleged incident, didn't initially want to name Hegseth but disclosed his name after the nurse who examined her filed the requisite police report. 

The anonymous woman claimed her drink had been spiked, while two hotel guests also confirmed Hegseth was drunk that night. The defense secretary denied he was intoxicated and insisted that their sexual encounter was consensual, and initiated by her. Hegseth eventually paid an undisclosed settlement to his accuser, and she signed an NDA as part of the agreement. The former Fox News host has maintained his innocence, but an email his mother sent him in 2018 amid Hegseth's legal drama with his second ex-wife raised eyebrows when it resurfaced in 2024. "On behalf of all the women (and I know it's many) you have abused in some way, I say... get some help and take an honest look at yourself," she penned (via the New York Times).

If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).