Defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth testified during his confirmation hearing this month that he wasn’t aware of any nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) in connection with his two divorces. While a review of court documents from Hegseth’s divorce from his second wife, Samantha Hegseth, does not reflect a full NDA, it includes a court-ordered agreement precluding either of them from saying anything publicly that would disparage the other.
Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia, a Democratic member of the Armed Services Committee, had asked the Trump Cabinet pick during the Jan. 14 confirmation hearing whether there were NDAs between him and his first wife, Meredith Schwarz, or his second wife, Samantha Hegseth.
“Senator, it is not something I am aware of,” Pete Hegseth responded. Pressed whether he would release either of those women from the NDAs if they exist, Hegseth said, “Senator, that is not my responsibility.”
A July 2018 Minnesota state court divorce decree reveals that Hegseth has agreed to limits on what he and his second wife, Samantha Hegseth, whom he was married to from 2010 to 2017, can say about each other in public. (He has been married to Jennifer Rauchet since 2019.)
That decree, which is publicly available through Minnesota’s online court files, reflects findings of fact and conclusions of law and constitutes a court judgment.
The decree also incorporates a “parenting plan” with a provision titled “Avoiding Derogatory Comments.” Under that provision, Pete and Samantha Hegseth are prohibited from saying “anything negative” about the other parent in front of their children or allowing “third parties within their control” to do so, a typical requirement in divorce agreements or orders.
The agreement further states each “will refrain from engaging themselves in any public discourse, including through either traditional media or social media, disparaging the other party,” and it obligates them to “take reasonable steps to encourage friends and family to refrain from doing so.”
When reached for comment about the language of the divorce decree, a lawyer for Pete Hegseth, Tim Parlatore, wrote: “This is not a non-disclosure agreement, it is a limited non-disparagement agreement. These are two legally distinct concepts and there is nothing inappropriate or inaccurate about Mr. Hegseth’s answers to the committee. It takes some significant imagination and intellectual dishonesty for anyone to consider this to bear on the credibility of his testimony.”
Sen. Kaine provided a statement to MSNBC, as well, commenting, “That clause in a divorce settlement could expose someone to severe consequences for sharing unflattering information about an ex-partner, even if it’s true.”
Asked whether Kaine had any comment on whether he thought Hegseth was untruthful or misleading during his testimony, a spokesperson for the senator told MSNBC, “Yes, he does think that.”
A spokesperson for Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., the chair of the Armed Services Committee, told MSNBC in a statement: “This appears to be yet another attempt by the liberal media to grasp at straws for any shred of controversy they can manufacture around this nominee. The July 2018 divorce decree contains a limited non-disparagement agreement, common in divorce decrees where children are involved, and not a ‘non-disclosure agreement.’ These are two completely different legal concepts. There is nothing incorrect or misleading about Mr. Hegseth’s testimony to the Senate Armed Services Committee earlier this month.”
Since her ex-husband’s nomination, Samantha Hegseth has commented publicly about him only once, in response to a request from NBC News for comment on an affidavit submitted to the Armed Services Committee by her former sister-in-law, Danielle Hegseth. Samantha told NBC News: “There was no physical abuse in my marriage. This is the only further statement I will make to you, I have let you know that I am not speaking and will not speak on my marriage to Pete. Please respect this decision.” Samantha Hegseth also has communicated with the FBI as part of its vetting of Hegseth. As reported by NBC News, during the second of three briefings it provided to the Armed Services Committee’s Republican and Democratic leaders, Wicker and Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., the committee’s ranking member, the Trump transition team told Wicker and Reed that Samantha Hegseth spoke with the FBI regarding her ex-husband and provided “a prepared statement” stating that Pete Hegseth has had and continues to have an alcohol abuse problem. Samantha Hegseth’s divorce lawyer, Robert Due, did not respond to MSNBC’s request for comment. The Armed Forces Committee voted along party lines this week to advance Hegseth’s nomination to the full Senate, and on Thursday, the full Senate voted 51-49 to bring his nomination to the Senate floor for a vote as early as Friday evening. Hegseth, a former Fox News host and Army veteran, has faced a rocky confirmation process amid various accusations regarding his personal and professional conduct, including allegations of excessive drinking and sexual misconduct, which he has repeatedly denied. NBC News has obtained Hegseth’s response to written questions from Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., following his confirmation hearing, in which Hegseth acknowledges having paid $50,000 to a “Jane Doe” who accused him of raping her during a 2017 conference in Monterey, California. Hegseth has denied that accusation and says the encounter was consensual. The district attorney in that case declined to press charges, explaining in a statement: “No charges were supported by proof beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Lisa Rubin is MS NOW's senior legal reporter and a former litigator.
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