How the NBC News Hit Piece Against Pete Hegseth Just Got Worse, But Not in the Way You Think

You cannot make this up: one of the NBC News reporters who wrote the shoddy hit piece against President Trump’s nominee for secretary of defense is accused in an internal complaint of making false claims of sexism and misogyny.

You read that right. And she then had the balls to run with this cockamamie story of Mr. Hegseth reportedly being threatening toward his second wife, who later refuted the allegations, characterizing them as inaccurate information. NBC News ran with it anyway. To boot, the allegations weren’t even brought forward by Mr. Hegseth’s ex-wife but by the ex-spouse of his brother. Are you kidding me?

Amazing but unsurprising news: Courtney Kube, one of the NBC News “reporters” behind the recent hit pieces on Pete Hegseth, is the subject of a complaint at NBC accusing her of making false claims of sexism & misogyny.
— Arthur Schwartz (@ArthurSchwartz) January 22, 2025

After it was revealed that the reporter behind the Hegseth hit pieces is the subject of a complaint accusing her of making phony accusations of sexism & misogyny she did what all leftists do — she went into hiding and denial. pic.twitter.com/HNuWgSKLcS
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) January 22, 2025

A really bad day for @ckubeNBC and @NBCNews as they now grapple with the fact that #CourtneyKube knowingly ran a false story nationally, after being provided direct comment and facts from the very person the story was about. The liability for her and #NBC will be significant.
— Kurt R. Davis (@KurtRDavis) January 22, 2025

The hit piece is killed with two haymakers to its credibility. One, and the most damning, is Hegseth’s second wife refuting the claims made. The second is why this complaint was brought forward at zero hour when the Senate is about to vote on his confirmation (via NBC News) [emphasis mine]:

Senators received an affidavit Tuesday from the former sister-in-law of defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth in which she says his behavior caused his second wife to fear for her safety. The receipt of the affidavit comes after Senate Armed Services Committee staffers were in contact with Hegseth's former sister-in-law for several days.
The former sister-in-law, Danielle Hegseth, submitted the affidavit in response to a Jan. 18 letter from Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., seeking “a statement attesting to your personal knowledge about Mr. Hegseth’s fitness to occupy this important position.”
[…]
In an email response Monday, Samantha Hegseth said: “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.”
She added, “I do not believe your information to be accurate, and I have cc’d my lawyer.”
Asked what information was not accurate and for comment on the affidavit, she replied on Tuesday: “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.”
[…]
Danielle Hegseth says in the affidavit, a redacted copy of which has been reviewed by NBC News, “I have chosen to come forward publicly, at significant personal sacrifice, because I am deeply concerned by what Hegseth’s confirmation would mean for our military and our country.”
She adds that part of her reason for coming forward is “because I have been assured that making this public statement will ensure that certain Senators who are still on the fence will vote against Hegseth’s confirmation. But for that assurance I would not subject myself or others referred to in this statement to the public scrutiny this statement is likely to cause.”