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Trump Says Pete Hegseth Is Doing A Great Job As Democrats Seek Pentagon Probe
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Trump says Hegseth is doing a very good job and will remain in the role. Talk of Hegseth’s future stems from Iran war fallout and GOP midterm losses.
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Trump backs Hegseth
President Donald Trump told reporters that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth would remain on the job, saying Hegseth was "doing a great job" even as Democrats prepare to use their new congressional majority to potentially investigate the Pentagon chief.
Trump also dismissed the prospect of replacing Hegseth, telling reporters he was "doing a great job" and predicting Hegseth would be "very popular" in Tennessee if he were to fill the soon-to-be-vacated Senate seat of Marsha Blackburn.
Vice President JD Vance placed the blame for Republicans' midterm losses on the war with Iran, saying in a social media post Wednesday, "The reason we lost is the war."
The Defense Department said Hegseth was "100 per cent committed" to leading the Pentagon until the end of Trump's term, which ends on Jan. 20, 2029, as questions swirled about his future after Tuesday's elections.
Impeachment and investigations
Democrats prepared to scrutinize the Pentagon chief, with ABC News describing Democrats' plans to use subpoena power to attempt to question Pentagon officials about the Iran war and Hegseth's "unexplained firings of senior military officers."
The House could also revisit impeachment, with Reason Magazine saying the House returns for the lame-duck session to revisit articles of impeachment lodged against Hegseth for "high crimes and misdemeanors" related to that war.
Republican Rep. Thomas Massie filed articles of impeachment earlier this year accusing Hegseth of abusing his office by launching hostilities against Iran without approval by Congress, and CNA reported that Massie had done so.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell insisted the secretary would not be deterred by politicians, telling ABC News Wednesday that Hegseth is "100% committed to leading the Department until the end of President Trump's term in office."
Tennessee seat speculation
Trump acknowledged speculation about whether Hegseth might be considered for Marsha Blackburn's soon-to-be-vacated Tennessee seat, telling reporters he thought Hegseth would be "very popular" there if he did. CNA reported that Blackburn declined to weigh in on who might be picked to fill her Senate seat and said, "It's not a conversation for today."
The Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the Pentagon "has followed the law" and that Hegseth would continue to drive Trump's agenda, while Fox News Digital reported Trump said he was doing "a very good job" when asked about replacing Hegseth. As the political pressure mounted, i24NEWS reported that a US military source said, "Hegseth’s days in office are numbered," while CBS News reported Trump asked advisers whether Hegseth should remain in his post.