Stephen Colbert came to Pete Hegseth’s defense as the former Fox News weekend host faces allegations of showing up to work with alcohol on his breath. According to the CBS host, most weekend morning hosts probably go on air while still intoxicated from the night before.
To kick off his monologue on Wednesday’s show, Colbert suggested that anyone shopping for Donald Trump this holiday season might consider getting him a new Secretary of Defense candidate, as the scandal around Hegseth continues to grow.
In addition to allegations of having a drinking problem, Hegseth has been also been accused of sexual assault. But, Colbert was able to brush off the drinking.
“Come on,” he said exasperatedly. “Come on! It’s a show that starts at 6 a.m. on the weekend. I’m sure a lot of morning hosts are still feeling it from the night before. I mean, for Pete’s sake, the CBS Sunday Morning logo does look hungover!”
Colbert did stipulate that, according to reports on these drinking allegations, none of the sources could recall a time when Hegseth missed work because he’d been drinking.
“And that’s great, because you know what everyone says when the drunk guy shows up at work: ‘Oh, good, you’re here,’” Colbert deadpanned.
The “Late Show” host also poked fun at how Hegseth has given “clues” about his drinking habits on air, like the time when the former Fox News host said having champagne in the morning “fixes the problem” of a hangover “because you have a little bit more champagne … and then your problem goes away!”
“Yes, he’s right,” Colbert said with a laugh. “He doesn’t have a drinking problem. He just keeps drinking and the problem goes away. It’s Pete Hegseth’s 12-step program. Step one, admit that you are powerless over alcohol. Then, chug, chug, chug, chug, chug, chug, chug, chug, chug, chug, tequila! It works for him.”
You can watch Stephen Colbert’s full monologue in the video above.
