Trump’s defense pick Pete Hegseth faces scrutiny over sexual assault claims and attacks on UN and Nato – US politics live | Trump administration

Hello and welcome to the US politics live blog.

This morning, we start with news that president-elect Donald Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense, Pete Hegseth, has previously criticized several key US alliances, including Nato, as well as allied countries such as Turkey and international institutions such as the UN, and has said that US troops should not be bound by the Geneva conventions.

This comes as Hegseth is also facing scrutiny over allegations of sexual assault and misconduct from 2017. Police did not press charges at the time, and Hegseth has maintained that the encounter was consensual and has denied any wrongdoing.

Last week, the police report detailing the allegations and incident was made public, and since then, concerns around Hegseth’s path to confirmation have grown, with some Republican lawmakers reportedly uncomfortable with the series of sexual misconduct allegations against Hegseth and Trump’s other cabinet picks.

As Hegseth faces a potentially challenging Senate confirmation process next year, concerns continue to arise regarding his qualifications for the position, as well as about his controversial views and past statements.

In other news:

• The prominent Republican US senator, James Lankford of Oklahoma said on Sunday that Congress would not give blanket approval to Trump’s controversial cabinet picks.

• Public health experts are concerned that if confirmed, Trump’s selection for secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F Kennedy Jr could jeopardize access to pharmaceutical drugs in favor of more experimental treatments.