Republicans are blaming their midterm defeat on the war in Iran, leaving the political future of the man most closely associated with the conflict hanging in the balance.
Yet senior sources say there is little prospect of Pete Hegseth—perhaps the most divisive defense secretary in modern US history—resigning voluntarily.
‘That would be deeply out of character,’ said a senior Pentagon insider. ‘He’s stubborn—very stubborn—and completely focused on himself.
‘He believes it is God’s mission for him to lead this department. He will not step down unless he is forced or pushed out.’
That does not necessarily mean Hegseth will remain in charge of the Defense Department, even though President Trump has publicly continued to stand behind him.
Hegseth could face impeachment by a Democratic-controlled Congress in 2027—or even sooner, during the lame-duck session, if fellow Republicans turn against him over his role in an unpopular war that has driven up US energy prices.
After Republican Congressman Thomas Massie said on Monday that he would seek an impeachment vote in the House this week, Hegseth told reporters he was not worried.
‘If you want to debate our success, I’m happy to do it all day long,’ he said.
Hegseth could nevertheless, according to reports, be offered a political escape route: appointment to the US Senate seat that Republican Marsha Blackburn will vacate when she becomes Tennessee’s governor.
Alternatively, the notoriously unpredictable Trump could dismiss him after removing Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, deciding that another scapegoat is needed following the GOP’s crushing losses—or concluding that the Iran war is no longer worth pursuing.
Dismissal would be the quickest way to remove Hegseth and is the outcome favored by four Pentagon insiders who spoke with Our News Outlet. They fear the defense secretary could encourage the administration to launch another major attack on Iran, as Trump has threatened.
Pete Hegseth’s future is uncertain after Republicans suffered devastating midterm losses amid growing anger over the Iran war
Trump has defended Hegseth publicly, but the unpredictable president could still fire him after ousting Chief of Staff Susie Wiles (right) and seeking someone to blame for the GOP’s heavy defeat
‘This isn’t about wanting to see Pete fail or seeking revenge,’ said a senior civilian defense official, who acknowledged that Hegseth’s weakened position was ‘enticing.’
‘It’s about protecting our personnel from a stage-two Iran conflict that would be far deadlier than stage one.’
In an emailed statement last Thursday, Chief Pentagon Spokesman Sean Parnell said: ‘Secretary Hegseth is 100% committed to leading the Department until the end of President Trump’s term in office.
‘Secretary Hegseth will not retreat or be deterred by politicians seeking partisan advantage or pursuing phony investigations in which no wrongdoing exists.
‘The Department of War has acted within the law, and our Secretary will continue to stand and fight every day to support and defend the Constitution, lead our troops, and protect America.’
Even before last week’s midterm rout, many of Hegseth’s most forceful critics were military and civilian officials inside the Pentagon. They regard the 46-year-old former Fox News host as unserious, unqualified and dismissive of expert advice, while accusing him of prioritizing loyalty to Trump over military intelligence, tactics and strategy.
‘A classic showhorse rather than a workhorse,’ said one Army official, who described how Hegseth had a makeup studio installed for himself at the Pentagon soon after taking office.
Trump has remained loyal to his war chief despite a 2025 incident in which Hegseth shared sensitive classified information about an impending US strike on Yemen with his wife and a journalist.
Trump has continued to praise his war chief after the Republican Party’s election defeat, saying Hegseth is doing a ‘very good job’
The former Fox News host has become one of the most polarizing figures in Trump’s administration, with insiders describing him as too stubborn to resign voluntarily
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Should Pete Hegseth remain as Defense Secretary despite mounting criticism over the Iran war?
The commander in chief also stood by Hegseth despite legally questionable boat strikes in the Caribbean and the firing of several senior military commanders, moves that left a leadership vacuum at the Pentagon.
Trump has defended him despite overruling his decision to livestream the execution of the wheelchair-bound Fort Hood shooter and expressing frustration that Hegseth minimized damage to US bases and the depletion of munitions stockpiles during the height of Operation Epic Fury last winter.
Trump is said to personally like the defense secretary, whose aggressive machismo—and, according to some insiders, ruthlessness—appeals to the president.
The testosterone-focused secretary, who called for ‘no fatties, no trannies, no beardos, no weirdos’ in the armed forces, is viewed by many at the Pentagon as petty and cruel. Trump, however, is reportedly drawn to his swagger.
‘Pete Hegseth understood the job in terms of the administration. He was performing for an audience of one and tailoring his message to the bravado his boss wanted to project,’ said Kelly Grieco, a senior fellow specializing in defense policy at the Stimson Center, a Washington-based thinktank.
‘The problem is that, eventually, images are not enough as the costs mount. Hegseth could say repeatedly that the US was winning, but prices at gas stations were telling people a different story.’
Our News Outlet reported last month that some Pentagon officials had spent much of the past 22 months collecting emails, memos and meeting notes about allegations that Hegseth and his inner circle ignored strategic and legal advice, berated those who offered it, withheld information from Congress and the public, and threatened subordinates who challenged them or were deemed too woke, fat, queer or disloyal.
They believed the paper trail—along with a list of potential witnesses inside the department and a series of recent private meetings with lawmakers and congressional staff—could prove useful if Democrats regained the House and opened an impeachment inquiry in 2027.
Tuesday’s election results surprised them, and much of the country, by giving Democrats not only firm control of the House but also the Senate.
By Wednesday, Democrats and Republicans alike were criticizing Hegseth for presenting an overly rosy picture of the war, underestimating its dangers and wrongly promising a short, decisive campaign similar to the capture of ousted Venezuelan dictator Nicolas Maduro.
The White House has largely acknowledged a connection between the election result and Iran.
Vice President JD Vance offered a blunt assessment of the midterm defeat in a post that read: ‘The reason we lost is the war.’
Vice President JD Vance addressed the crushing midterm defeat, saying: ‘The reason we lost is the war’
‘If you want to argue that it was worth it—that losing the Senate for the next six years was a price worth paying—then make that case. Agree or disagree, at least that would be honest,’ Vance continued.
‘But everyone knows why we lost. Any honest discussion about where we go next has to begin there.’
Trump offered a more measured assessment. ‘Iran was a piece of it,’ he told The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday night, while defending his decision to begin the war.
Trump repeated his support for Hegseth last Wednesday, saying: ‘I think he’s doing a very good job.’
Even so, the president is reportedly asking aides and congressional allies whether to remove Hegseth, much as former President George W. Bush dismissed Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld the morning after the 2006 midterms, when anger over the Iraq war helped Democrats take control of Congress.
Peter Feaver, a Duke University scholar of civil-military relations, cautioned against placing too much weight on those reports, noting Trump’s habit of reconsidering the position of nearly every cabinet member. ‘It is not a surefire indication that you are about to be fired,’ he said.
‘Every few months, there is a wave of stories claiming Secretary Hegseth is on his way out. They have always been wrong because he has retained the president’s confidence.’
CBS News reported that Ron DeSantis, whose tenure as Florida governor ends in January, is being considered as a possible successor to Hegseth.
Our sources rejected that possibility in part because DeSantis has recently sharply criticized Trump and other Republicans. His own presidential ambitions could also make him reluctant to join an unpopular administration.
Hegseth could have political ambitions of his own. He ran for the Senate in Minnesota in 2012 but withdrew without securing the Republican nomination.
He campaigned in August for an Iowa Republican, an important stop for politicians considering presidential bids. NBC News has reported that Hegseth and his wife, Jennifer Hegseth, have discussed a possible presidential run with close advisers.
The couple has established residency in Tennessee, where Blackburn—one of Trump’s closest Senate allies—will leave her seat to move into the governor’s mansion and choose her successor.
Sources say the apparent mockery directed at Hegseth now also extends to his wife, Jennifer
Republican Marsha Blackburn will leave her Senate seat for the governor’s mansion and has been mentioned as a possible route to a successor for Hegseth
Appointing Hegseth would provide him with a soft landing, allowing him to avoid both an impeachment threat and the humiliation of being fired by Trump.
Last month, he attended a University of Tennessee football game with Blackburn. Her office has not responded to questions about whom she plans to appoint.
The Pentagon has dismissed the speculation as ‘Beltway gossip.’ Asked this week about a possible Senate appointment, Trump said: ‘I actually think he’d be very popular if he did that.’
Meanwhile, an aide to a senior elected Tennessee Republican told Our News Outlet on Thursday that state GOP leaders ‘aren’t keen on being dumped with’ what he called a ‘Hegseth hot potato.’
Inside the Pentagon, the post-election mood was described as ‘giddy.’ The reaction was less about party politics—many employees are Republicans—than the belief among Hegseth’s critics that the administration’s overwhelming backlash and the unpopularity of the Iran war could hasten his removal. Outgoing Republican Representative
Thomas Massie, a vocal opponent of the war and a critic of Trump and Hegseth, renewed his promise to seek an impeachment vote next week.
‘There is one circumstance in which I will not reintroduce the articles of impeachment: if Hegseth resigns,’ he posted on X Wednesday.
‘He is not only incompetent and corrupt, but is undermining our national security and endangering our troops,’ Democratic Representative Jason Crow, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, posted Wednesday afternoon.
Military experts warn that another major wave of strikes against Iran could leave US forces dangerously exposed
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries joined critics questioning Hegseth’s future, asking bluntly on Thursday: ‘Why is Pete Hegseth still around?’
‘Every day he remains at the Pentagon is another day that our service members—our men and women, sons and daughters, brothers and sisters—face greater danger.’
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries added to the criticism Thursday morning, posting: ‘Why is Pete Hegseth still around?’
Still, impeachment is far from certain.
No cabinet secretary has ever been successfully removed from office through impeachment.
William Belknap, President Ulysses Grant’s Secretary of War, and Alejandro Mayorkas, President Joe Biden’s Homeland Security Secretary, were both impeached by the House but acquitted by the Senate.
Even if enough lawmakers from both parties support impeaching and removing Hegseth, congressional aides say the process could take weeks or months as it moves through both chambers.
Pentagon insiders fear that delay would give Hegseth, other advisers, Israel and Saudi Arabia too much time to persuade Trump to launch another major attack on Iran in an effort to end the war through military force rather than diplomacy.
They and military scholars told us that such an operation would expose American troops to unprecedented danger.
Grieco estimates that if US forces had to intercept Iranian missiles at a rate comparable to last winter, severely depleted supplies could exhaust the Patriot interceptors needed to protect American troops ‘in about three weeks.’
‘We would see more Iranian drones and missiles get through,’ she said.
‘The question is whether another round of strikes would be worth the cost. What would it accomplish that the previous strikes did not?’
‘There is no evidence that another wave of attacks would advance US objectives.’
‘At some point, the United States will have to accept a strategic loss,’ she added.
Three Pentagon insiders said they feared the administration was too determined to claim victory over Iran to step back.
‘It could become a bloodbath,’ said Army officials who believe Hegseth is ‘reckless enough’ and Trump is ‘so desperate to win something, anything’ that a second major confrontation with Iran remains possible.
Another Army official pointed to the monthly evangelical worship services Hegseth has held during working hours at the Pentagon.
Although the services are officially voluntary, many senior Defense Department employees, including non-Christians, have reportedly felt pressured to attend in person or watch through the internal television network, fearing retaliation from Hegseth.
‘If we could organize a prayer meeting for him to be sent packing, most of us would be delighted to attend.’
