Trump cabinet picks battle misconduct claims and controversy

Several of US President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet nominees are facing heavy scrutiny, including claims of misconduct.

His defence secretary pick Pete Hegseth denies a sexual assault allegation and potential attorney general Matt Gaetz is at the centre of an ethics investigation.

Trump's health secretary nominee, Robert F Kennedy Jr, is facing severe criticism for his vaccine scepticism.

Trump will need the US Senate to confirm these nominees when he takes office in January, and though the chamber will be controlled by his fellow Republicans, his cabinet contenders will face an intense grilling during bipartisan hearings.

US Vice-President-elect JD Vance rushed to Hegseth’s defence, saying the latin phrase is a nothing more than a Christian motto. He accused the Associated Press, which first reported the story on the tattoo, of "disgusting anti-Christian bigotry".

Hegseth was stopped from serving as an officer in Washington DC during President Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2021. In a book published earlier this year he said he was turned down for the duty because of his tattoos.

Meanwhile, Trump’s pick for attorney general, Matt Gaetz, is battling allegations of misconduct while he was a congressman.

He resigned from his Florida seat in the US House of Representatives on Thursday within hours of Trump nominating him to lead the US Department of Justice.

His exit halted the release of a congressional report into allegations of sexual misconduct, illicit drug use and misuse of campaign funds.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, asked on Friday that the report remain under wraps as Gaetz is no longer a member of the body - even amid bipartisan requests that it be shared as part of his vetting for the role of top prosecutor in the US.

Hours later, an attorney for two women who provided testimony to the House Ethics Committee about Gaetz urged lawmakers to release the panel's report.

The lawyer, Joe Leppard, told CBS that one of his clients had witnessed Gaetz having sex with an underage girl in Florida in 2017. Mr Leppard urged lawmakers to release the House Ethics Committee report.

However, the justice department last year investigated the allegations and declined to press charges against Gaetz.

He has previously denied claims he had sex with a 17-year-old while he was an adult at a party in Orlando.