How many times has Pete Hegseth been married and how many children does he have?

Though he may not have added the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic to a Signal group with Trump administration officials, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth did send war plans to all its members. Jeffrey Goldberg published an article in The Atlantic detailing his time in the group, where plans for attacks on the Houthis in Yemen were shared. Other members included National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, who had added Goldberg, and Vice President J.D. Vance.

The revelation that officials are communicating on non-government servers would be significant on its own. However, the sharing of sensitive information—without the sender knowing exactly who is receiving it—elevates the incident to an entirely different level. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer branded the security failure, as “amateur behavior,” writing on X that a breach of this nature puts “our national security in danger.”

Before joining the Trump administration as Secretary of Defense, he was a Fox News host, and before that, a member of the U.S. armed forces.

During his Senate confirmation, Hegseth’s conduct and temperament came under scrutiny. Virginia Senator Tim Kaine focused part of his questioning on the fact that Hegseth had a child with a woman who was not his wife while still married. Additionally, allegations of sexual misconduct, mistreatment, and alcohol abuse also surfaced, drawing further concern from some Senators.

Pete Hegseth’s ex-wives and children

He has been married three times, most recently to Fox executive producer Jennifer Rauchet, with whom he shares one child, who was born while still married to Samantha Deering, his second wife, with whom he had three children. His first wife, who he admitted to cheating on five times, is Meredith Schwarz. He is also stepdad to Rauchet’s three children so Trump’s appointee for Secretary of Defense has four biological children and is stepdad to three.

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