President Donald Trump's pick to lead the Department of Defense, former Fox News host Pete Hegseth, has faced some of the strongest opposition from Democrats compared to most of Trump's other nominees.

The hits keep coming for Hegseth, as was evidenced this week after senators received an affidavit from Hegseth's former sister-in-law in which she accuses him of causing his ex-wife to fear for her life during their marriage, NBC News reported. 

The ex-wife, Samantha Hegseth, strongly denied the claims, making sure to note that there was no "physical abuse" in her marriage.

The affidavit came as "Senate Armed Services Committee staffers were in contact with Hegseth's former sister-in-law for several days," the outlet reported.

What's going on?

Democrat Sen. Jack Reed of Rhode Island, in a letter to Pete Hegseth's former sister-in-law, Danielle Hegseth, requested "a statement attesting to your personal knowledge about Mr. Hegseth’s fitness to occupy this important position."

The letter was sent on Jan. 18, as Pete Hegseth prepares to potentially face a Senate confirmation vote despite strong resistance from Democrats in the upper chamber.

“As I have said for months, the reports of Mr. Hegseth’s history of alleged sexual assault, alcohol abuse, and public misconduct necessitate an exhaustive background investigation. I have been concerned that the background check process has been inadequate, and this sworn affidavit confirms that fact," Reed said in a statement.

He added that "the alleged pattern of abuse and misconduct by Mr. Hegseth is disturbing. This behavior would disqualify any service member from holding any leadership position in the military, much less being confirmed as the Secretary of Defense."

Breaking: Pete Hegseth accused of causing fear in his second wife according to affidavit from former sister-in-law. Samantha Hegseth refutes allegations, denies physical abuse, and refuses further comment. pic.twitter.com/VCLaRXnd1X

— DAILY INFO🇺🇲 (@Robinsonjean0) January 21, 2025

NBC News noted:

Danielle describes in the affidavit allegations of volatile and threatening conduct by Hegseth that made his second wife, Samantha Hegseth, fear for her safety. Among the allegations are that Samantha hid in a closet once from Hegseth, that she developed escape plans for use “if she felt she needed to get away from Hegseth” that would be activated with a code word and that she did once put the escape plans into action.

Ex-wife's bombshell dispute

Samantha Hegseth responded to the letter and essentially shot down any notion that it's accurate, causing a major credibility issue for Danielle Hegseth.

"First and foremost, I have not and will not comment on my marriage to Pete Hegseth.  I do not have representatives speaking on my behalf, nor have I ever asked anyone to share or speak about the details of my marriage on my behalf, whether it be a reporter, a committee member, a transition team member, etc," Samantha Hegseth said.

In her statement to NBC News, she added, "I do not believe your information to be accurate, and I have cc’d my lawyer."

She then made it clear, "There was no physical abuse in my marriage."